Emily glanced over at her. "It's not time yet," she said quietly.

Emma nodded, though she wasn't sure she understood. She thought about saying something else, but kept quiet and followed Emily out of the ballroom.

On the other side of the room, Mrs. Austin was still fuming. “Emily Blair is unbelievable. How dare she pretend to be my daughter? I can't believe I even wasted my time arguing with them. I really shouldn't have.”

She looked furious. "If I see her again, I won't even acknowledge her. Not even a glance."

Mr. Austin listened as his wife vented, but inside, his thoughts were going in a different direction.

He waited until she finished, then spoke in a calm, low voice. "They seemed so sure of themselves. If they were lying, it'd be easy to catch them in it. Emily Blair managed to build a whole company from the ground up. She doesn't seem like the type to tell such an obvious lie."

Mrs. Austin immediately picked up on his meaning. Her brow furrowed, and she pulled her arm away from his.

"What are you getting at?"

Her tone was icy, but after a slight pause, Mr. Austin went on anyway.

“What if they're telling the truth? What if Emily Blair really is our daughter?"

Her whole expression shifted. She stared at him, eyes sharp. "What's that supposed to mean? Are you on their side now?"

He reached out and rested a hand on her shoulder, giving it a gentle pat. "I know you have issues with Emily because of what happened with Isabella, but just try to think about it. This isn't the first time Emma George has come to us. She's been persistent. There has to be a reason. No one who's just making stuff up would keep coming back like this. And she knew that Isabella wasn't our biological daughter. Only our family knows that. How could Emma George possibly know?"

"If she knew that, maybe she knows about our real daughter, too. I think we should at least hear her out. We could get a strand of Emily's hair or a drop of blood, do a DNA test. If she's not our daughter, we'll have proof to throw in their faces and tell them to leave us alone. But if she is... then we have to think about what comes next."

"We've looked for almost a hundred girls over the years, done tests with anyone who even looked a little like us. I know you're upset. I know you want to find our real daughter, and you want to make up for all the years we lost. We can't just ignore any possibility. If Emily might be her, we owe it to ourselves to find out."

He kept his hand on her shoulder, rubbing it in slow circles. "I get how you feel about Emily, especially after Isabella, but just taking the test won't give Emily any advantage."

Mrs. Austin just stared at him, her face cold and unreadable. She didn't say a word until he finished.

He let out a quiet sigh. “So, what do you think?”

She suddenly let out a bitter laugh. "What do I think? I think you've lost your mind. You actually believe Emily Blair and Emma George? Seriously? You must be out of your mind."

Her words stung, and Mr. Austin's expression darkened. “You need to calm down.”

She pulled away from his touch, sneering. “Oh, I am calm. I'm calm enough to know that nothing Emily Blair says is true. I'm calm enough to know that someone with her kind of character could never be my daughter. No way. Absolutely not. The daughter I gave birth to would never be so shameless or stubborn."

This wasn't just anger talking. It was what Mrs. Austin truly believed.

She couldn't accept the idea that she could have a daughter like Emily. Emily didn't deserve to call her mother.

Just thinking about Emily even trying to take Isabella's place, trying to claim what should have been Isabella's, made her feel sick to her stomach.

Mr. Austin could see she was stuck in her anger. He frowned, saying nothing. Mrs. Austin clenched her jaw. "You're letting them trick you. This is exactly what they want. You think a DNA test is harmless, but you're underestimating Emily. With her resources and smarts, it'd be nothing for her to tamper with the results. You know how obsessed your father is with finding his real granddaughter. If Emily shows up with a DNA match, she'll use that as proof to force her way into our family. Your father will believe her, and she'll get exactly what she wants... everything that belongs to the Austins."