Page 78 of Dr. Billionaire's Fake Marriage

Mother shrugs. “So,” she says, “what’s the problem? Is she a threat to you?”

I shake my head. "No, she is not," I reply. "I don't know. I feel like my confidence fell to zero when I saw her. I mean, she is beautiful, rich, and sophisticated. She looks like the woman I will never become."

I close my eyes, and as I speak. I feel like I am in touch with my emotions. I am being truthful about how I feel about Nancy's appearance.

I always thought Troy was way out of my league, but I never thoughthow faruntil I saw Nancy. I never thought it would bother me until I saw how sophisticated Nancy is.

"So you are just going to let her win?" Mother asks. "You think she didn't know about you before now?" She didn't show up coincidentally, and if she is back to distract Troy's attention away from me, then my instincts are right. She is here for that, and I need to fight her.

"You need to take control of the situation and ensure Troy doesn't fall for her trap." Mother advises me. She talks about everything that has happened since I was away from Richmond; she spends the next five hours talking while I listen and laugh.

It feels great to be here. To be with my mother again and hear her laughter fills the void in my heart.

I leave Mother's house feeling better about myself than I did this morning. Her eyes beg me not to leave, but I tell her I must get dressed for tonight's family dinner.

While Mrs. Robinson still intimidates me, I only attend the family dinner because it means a lot to Troy. Plus, Troy promises to protect me from his family, and I count on it.

Troy and I say little as we prepare for dinner, but Troy takes my hand before I can open even the front door.

He turns me around and holds me against his chest. The rhythm of our breath matches, which makes my stomach flutter.

"You've said little to me since you got back," he says, "I hate it when you don't talk to me."

“Nancy,” I start. “I keep thinking about how intimidated I am by her. I try not to think about it, but I can’t get it out of my head.”

“You don't have to be,” Troy affirms. “I am with you, not with her. That should say a lot.”

"Okay," I say as Troy kisses me on the forehead. We drive to his mother's mansion.

Nothing has changed about Mrs. Robinson's home since I left. Nothing has changed about her, either. She is still the most elegant, sophisticated woman I have ever met.

Surprisingly, she looks excited to see me, as if she has accepted me into the family. But I don't get ahead of myself just yet. Mrs. Robinson had done a lot to make this marriage crash to have a sudden change of heart.

She stands up to kiss Troy and me on our cheeks. I watch as she catches up with her son, who she hasn't seen for a while.

I finally relax my shoulder when Amelia and Henry walk into the dining room. The couple is still putting up an act to make it look like they are cool together, but I can see that Amelia can't hide it for long.

She looks tired of everything happening around her - the fake marriage already - and like me, we are happy to be together. A bright smile curves her lips. She takes the seat next to me and holds my hand excitedly.

“I never thought you’d come,” she says. “I thought I had lost my best friend.”

“No, you haven’t lost me,” I reply. “You can never lose me. Troy promises to keep me safe. I am counting on that.”

“I heard his ex-wife is in town,” Amelia admits. “I heard she is invited to dinner.” She lowers her tone and repeats, “I think Mrs. Robinson invited her here tonight.”

I raise my brows. Amelia looks away, grasping that she must have said too much. “You didn’t know anything about it?”

I shake my head. "No," I say, "I didn't know until now." I look over at Troy, busy talking to his brother. I wonder if he knows his sophisticated wife will be at the same dinner with me.

I feel my chest tighten; it hits me that Troy may be unable to keep his promise. He may not be able to keep me safe.

It hurts me to know that Troy may be helpless in all of this. His mother invited his college sweetheart to dinner, which means she may want to subtly sabotage my relationship with her son.

Amelia is right. Nancy is invited to the family dinner; she elegantly strides into the dining room, apologizing for keeping us waiting.

The maids look star-struck, as if they had seen a celebrity. Amelia will not stop grinning too. "Why does everyone look like they've seen a ghost?" I whisper to Amelia.

Amelia raises her brows. "You don't know Nancy Henderson?" She takes her phone and types the name in Google. Nancy's picture and biography pop up.

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