Chapter 6 - The Invitation
1787 Words
The envelope arrived at nine in the morning.
Jasmine knew it was from the Kane family before she opened it.
The black paper carried a gold seal pressed into the center.
Not Damon’s.
Kane.
She turned it over.
Her name was written across the back in neat, unmistakably masculine handwriting.
Jasmine Voss.
Priya leaned over her shoulder.
“That’s dramatic.”
Jasmine glanced at her.
“You’re the one who told me to investigate him.”
“I said investigate. I didn’t say receive mysterious black envelopes from his mansion.”
Jasmine broke the seal.
Inside was a single invitation.
THE KANE FOUNDATION
ANNUAL GALA
She scanned the details.
Three weeks from now.
Kane Grand Hall.
Formal attire.
Private guest reception.
Her eyes moved to the bottom of the card.
There was a handwritten line beneath the printed invitation.
I would like the opportunity to speak with you privately. — Marcus Kane
Jasmine read it twice.
Priya noticed.
“He wrote that?”
“Yes.”
“Personally?”
“Apparently.”
Priya took the invitation.
“This isn’t normal.”
“No.”
“Are you going?”
Jasmine looked at her.
“Yes.”
Priya’s mouth fell open.
“That was fast.”
Jasmine slipped the invitation back into its envelope.
“Someone has been watching me.”
“That’s not exactly reassuring.”
“Someone warned me to stay away from Marcus.”
“Also not reassuring.”
“And now Marcus is inviting me to a private conversation.”
Priya folded her arms.
“So your conclusion is?”
Jasmine looked toward the window.
“Someone doesn’t want me near him.”
“And that makes you want to get closer?”
“No.”
She turned.
“It makes me want to know why.”
Priya stared at her for a moment.
Then she sighed.
“That’s much worse.”
⸻
That afternoon, Jasmine sat across from her father.
The same office.
The same desk.
A completely different woman.
Her father looked at the invitation in her hand.
“You’re attending?”
“Yes.”
“I don’t think that’s wise.”
Jasmine raised an eyebrow.
“You’re the one who told me the Kane family controls our contracts.”
“I said we need to maintain a relationship with them.”
“Then why shouldn’t I attend their event?”
“Because Marcus isn’t Damon.”
Jasmine leaned back.
“I know.”
Her father looked uncomfortable.
“You don’t understand Marcus.”
“Then explain him to me.”
Silence.
Jasmine waited.
Her father looked toward the window.
“Marcus Kane doesn’t do anything without a reason.”
“Neither do I.”
His eyes returned to hers.
“Jasmine.”
“What?”
“Whatever happens between you and Marcus, remember that he’s still a Kane.”
She almost smiled.
“That’s exactly what I’m trying to remember.”
Her father frowned.
“What does that mean?”
“Nothing.”
She stood.
“I’m going.”
“Jasmine—”
She stopped at the door.
Her father hesitated.
Then said quietly:
“Be careful.”
She looked back.
It was the first time he’d said it without mentioning business.
“I will.”
⸻
Three days passed.
Jasmine returned to her father’s house temporarily, but she refused to let the change control her life.
She found a new apartment.
Opened a separate bank account.
Started looking for independent consulting work.
She didn’t tell her father.
She didn’t tell anyone from the Voss pack.
For the first time, Jasmine began building something that belonged entirely to her.
Then the invitations started arriving.
Not social ones.
Business opportunities.
One came from a property development company.
Another from a private architectural firm.
The third carried a familiar name.
Kane Holdings.
Jasmine stared at it.
Priya looked over.
“That’s either an opportunity…”
“Or a trap.”
“Exactly.”
Jasmine opened the proposal.
A commercial redevelopment project.
Kane Holdings wanted an independent architectural consultant for a new luxury tower.
She read the document twice.
There was no mention of Damon.
No mention of Marcus.
No personal request.
Just business.
Jasmine frowned.
“Why would they send this to me?”
Priya shrugged.
“Maybe you’re good at your job.”
Jasmine looked at her.
“That’s a very strange concept.”
“I know. You should try believing in yourself sometime.”
Jasmine smiled.
For the first time in days, she laughed.
Then she looked back at the proposal.
A thought occurred to her.
If she accepted the contract, she wouldn’t need to wait three weeks for answers.
She could meet Marcus sooner.
On her terms.
Jasmine picked up her phone.
She dialed the number at the bottom of the proposal.
A woman answered.
“Kane Holdings. How may I help you?”
“This is Jasmine Voss.”
There was a brief pause.
“Yes, Miss Voss.”
“I received your proposal.”
“We’re pleased to hear that.”
“I’d like to discuss it directly with whoever authorized it.”
Another pause.
Then:
“Mr. Kane is available tomorrow at eleven.”
Jasmine’s grip tightened slightly.
“Marcus Kane?”
“Yes.”
She looked at Priya.
Priya mouthed:
Oh, no.
Jasmine ignored her.
“Tomorrow at eleven works.”
⸻
The next morning, Jasmine stood outside Kane Holdings.
The building was impossible to miss.
Forty-eight floors of dark glass and steel.
The Kane emblem stood above the entrance.
She looked up.
Her wolf stirred.
Not violently.
Not fearfully.
Almost expectantly.
Why do I know this place?
Jasmine frowned.
She had never been inside.
Yet the sensation was strangely familiar.
The elevator doors opened.
She stepped inside.
“Forty-eighth floor,” the receptionist had said.
Jasmine pressed the button.
The doors closed.
The elevator began to rise.
Twenty floors.
Thirty.
Forty.
The pressure in her chest increased.
At forty-eight, the doors opened.
A man stood waiting.
Dark suit.
Controlled expression.
Ethan.
“Miss Voss?”
“Yes.”
“Mr. Kane is expecting you.”
Jasmine stepped out.
He led her through a quiet hallway.
At the end stood a large wooden door.
Ethan knocked once.
“Come in.”
Jasmine froze.
That voice.
She had heard it before.
The night of the family meeting.
The night her wolf had recognized him.
Ethan opened the door.
Marcus stood beside the floor-to-ceiling windows, his back to them.
He turned.
His eyes landed on Jasmine.
The room changed.
Not visibly.
Nothing moved.
But Jasmine felt the shift.
Marcus did too.
His expression remained controlled.
Only his eyes betrayed him.
For one brief second, his gaze dropped to her throat.
Then returned to her eyes.
“Miss Voss.”
“Mr. Kane.”
Ethan closed the door behind her.
They were alone.
Marcus gestured toward the chair opposite his desk.
“Sit.”
Jasmine did.
He remained standing.
“I assume you know why you’re here.”
“The proposal.”
“Partly.”
Jasmine’s eyes narrowed.
“What’s the other part?”
Marcus studied her.
“You received my invitation.”
“I did.”
“And?”
“I accepted.”
A faint change crossed his face.
“Good.”
Jasmine leaned forward.
“Why did you invite me?”
Marcus didn’t answer immediately.
Instead, he walked to the desk and placed a folder in front of her.
“Because I want you to work on this project.”
She opened it.
The plans were impressive.
A massive commercial complex.
Hotels.
Private residences.
Retail space.
Offices.
She scanned the technical details.
“This is worth more than the proposal you sent.”
“It is.”
“You’re offering me the entire architectural consultation?”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
Marcus’s gaze remained fixed on her.
“Because I reviewed your previous work.”
Jasmine looked up.
“You did?”
“Yes.”
“How?”
“I asked.”
Something about the answer bothered her.
“You had people investigate me.”
Marcus didn’t deny it.
“I wanted to know who you were.”
Jasmine slowly closed the folder.
“And what did you find?”
His expression hardened.
“Less than I wanted.”
The answer caught her off guard.
Marcus moved closer.
Not enough to touch.
Enough for her to notice his scent.
Something dark.
Clean.
Familiar.
Her wolf lifted its head.
Him.
Jasmine swallowed.
Marcus noticed.
His jaw tightened.
For a moment, neither spoke.
Then he said quietly:
“You’re afraid of me.”
“No.”
“Good.”
“I’m cautious.”
“That’s better.”
Jasmine stood.
“Then let’s be clear about something.”
Marcus waited.
“If this contract is an excuse to get close to me, I won’t accept it.”
His eyes sharpened.
“It isn’t.”
“And the gala?”
“That is different.”
“How?”
Marcus took a slow breath.
“I have questions.”
“So do I.”
A pause.
“About what?”
Jasmine held his gaze.
“You.”
Something flickered in his expression.
Not surprise.
Recognition.
As though he’d been expecting that answer.
Marcus stepped closer.
“What do you want to know?”
Jasmine’s wolf suddenly pressed against her ribs.
Hard.
She didn’t understand why.
But she knew one thing.
Whatever Marcus Kane was hiding—
she had just stepped directly into it.
She lifted her chin.
“Why does everyone keep telling me to stay away from you?”
Marcus went completely still.
And for the first time since she’d met him, the control in his expression cracked.
Only for a second.
But Jasmine saw it.
He knew something.
She was certain of it.
Marcus looked toward the closed office door.
Then back at her.
“Who told you?”
Jasmine smiled faintly.
“That’s not an answer.”
“No.”
His voice dropped.
“It isn’t.”
He reached for the folder.
Then stopped.
“Come to the gala.”
“I already said I would.”
“Come alone.”
Jasmine’s eyes narrowed.
“Why?”
Marcus held her gaze.
“Because if I’m right about what is happening…”
He paused.
“…someone will be watching you.”
A cold sensation moved down her spine.
“Who?”
Marcus’s expression became unreadable again.
“I don’t know yet.”
He opened the door.
The meeting was over.
Jasmine stepped into the hallway.
She had come to Kane Holdings looking for answers.
Instead, she had left with something much more dangerous.
A question Marcus Kane was afraid to answer.
And three weeks suddenly felt far too long.
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