a Kan

. I slipped through a side door, my movements sure and silent, bypassing the lingering guests and heading

he office of Don Vincent Kane. The heart of the Kane organization. The ol

ee times. Fir

d, raspy, and entirely ac

gold-rimmed spectacles and was reading a document-the patriarch in his lair. On the wall behind him hung a faded photograph of him shak

ated downstairs. He simply gestured to the chai

lked to the desk, offered a slight, respectful bo

nd in marriage, backed by the full weight of the Kane family resources, in exchange for a secure future for my husband within the Kane hierarchy. The two Kane famil

rose a fraction. He rem

ose to marry will receive the backing of

ned downstairs this evening has made it clea

ment-was strategic. It showed humility. S

ght to choose again. And this time, I intend to mak

aned forward, steepling his fingers. He was a predator who had just spotted an unexpected n

ve a worthy leader is a man who controls his emotions-not one controlled by them. A man who wo

of Brett's incompetence without ever speaking his name. A dir

reevaluating me-seeing past the pretty, docile girl he thought he knew. He was seeing the heire

for Brett die. I was in this room, actively dismantling his

in smile spread across his lips. "You are far

as a future granddaughte

s it yo

d just given me permis

-