Hillbilly Girlie Marries a Billionaire – Episode 15
Emily read the anonymous message until the words lost shape. The sender knew about the contract, Lucas’s unfinished conversation, and his mother’s return. Sophie was the obvious suspect, yet doubt did not need a trustworthy source to wound. It needed only to echo a fear already living inside her.
She packed nothing. Lucas had explicitly told her to wait, and she owed him enough trust to hear his explanation. Still, morning found her awake beside an untouched pillow, wondering whether the kiss had been a goodbye he had not intended to give. The contract remained in her suitcase like a clock, every clause counting toward an ending she no longer wanted.
At headquarters, Lucas spent the night preventing Sophie’s family from exploiting the canceled supply agreement. Noah attended the emergency board meeting and surprised everyone by supporting his brother. He argued that no partnership justified allowing a supplier’s daughter to abuse the CEO’s wife under Anderson protection.
Afterward, Lucas asked why Noah had helped. Noah claimed he wanted the company intact when he eventually took it. Then he warned Lucas that treating Emily as temporary while acting like a jealous husband would hurt her more than any public scandal.
Lucas returned to the estate carrying exhaustion and a velvet box. He found Emily near the window, still wearing his shirt beneath a robe. Relief crossed her face before caution concealed it. He understood that his interrupted words had frightened her.
He opened the box and revealed a smaller ring set with a pale green stone. It had belonged to his grandmother, the one relative who had taught him that loyalty could exist without control. Lucas said canceling the contract did not mean ending their marriage; he wanted to replace the agreement with a real choice, made without payment or deadline.
Emily could not speak. Hope arrived too quickly to trust. She reminded him they had known each other only days and that attraction born from crisis could vanish once life settled. Lucas accepted every objection but asked her not to leave while they discovered the answer.
Before she could respond, the front doors opened below. A woman’s commanding voice criticized the flowers, the staff uniforms, and the dust on a table polished that morning. Victoria Anderson had returned from Europe, and displeasure moved through the house ahead of her like weather.
Lucas’s mother entered the suite without knocking. Elegant, severe, and perfectly composed, she looked at Emily’s bare legs beneath Lucas’s shirt, the family signet at her throat, and the velvet box between them. Her expression suggested she had found an intruder wearing stolen jewels.
Victoria demanded an introduction. Lucas said, “This is Emily, my wife.” His mother laughed once, certain he was provoking her. When no one joined in, disbelief hardened into fury. She had expected Lucas eventually to marry Sophie, a woman whose family and education strengthened the Anderson name.
Emily offered her hand. Victoria ignored it and asked where she had been raised. The answer—on a small farm outside town—confirmed every prejudice she had brought home. She called the wedding impulsive and ordered Adam to begin an annulment inquiry.
Lucas refused. He informed his mother that neither his marriage nor his household required her approval. Victoria countered that everything he possessed existed because of the family she had built around him. Lucas’s voice went cold as he reminded her that control was not the same as love.
Grandfather Anderson intervened from the doorway. He declared the marriage accepted and Emily entitled to remain. Victoria recognized that public opposition would isolate her, so she changed tactics. With sudden sweetness, she invited Emily to breakfast the next morning and promised to welcome her properly.
Emily heard the threat beneath the courtesy. Lucas did too. He said he would attend, but Victoria insisted she wanted time alone with her new daughter-in-law. Refusal would appear cowardly, so Emily agreed.
After Victoria left, Lucas urged Emily not to trust the performance. She replied that she had dealt with difficult mothers, sick livestock, and bank officers before sunrise; she could survive one breakfast. Her humor made him smile, but concern remained in his eyes.
Lucas gave her the green-stone ring. He did not place it on her finger, leaving the decision with her. Emily closed her hand around the box. She wanted to say yes to a real marriage, yet accepting while his family closed ranks around them felt like walking deeper into a beautiful trap.
That evening, Victoria summoned Mia, the maid Lucas had dismissed after the banquet incident. The woman entered through the service wing, desperate to regain her position. Victoria offered money and protection if Mia could make Emily reveal greed, bad manners, or violence before the household.
Mia agreed eagerly. She described Emily as strong enough to resist ordinary intimidation. Victoria told her strength merely required a more personal target. She already knew about the hospital, the surrogacy application, and the mother Emily would do anything to protect.
Upstairs, Emily placed the green ring beside her wedding band but did not put it on. She called the hospital and learned her mother’s condition was improving. For a few precious minutes, happiness quieted every fear.
After the call, a staff member delivered a breakfast card in Victoria’s name. On the back, written where only Emily would see it, was a warning: Come alone and obey Mrs. Anderson—or your mother’s next payment will never reach the hospital.