Free Web NovelChapter 317: Chapter 317 – This ends now
Marigold thought about it for a second, then nodded. "She has long silver hair. But nobody sees her face."
Voren’s frown deepened. Nobody sees her face? He was about to ask more when Marigold stretched under the blanket and let out a long, dramatic yawn. "Daddy, I’m tired."
He knew that tone. Once she decided the conversation was done, it was done. No amount of questions, bribes, or promises would change that.
Sure enough, she rolled onto her side, closed her eyes, and within minutes her breathing had settled into that peaceful rhythm, like she hadn’t just dropped several bombshells that were gonna keep him up all night.
Voren watched her sleep for a while, the room feeling strangely quiet around him. Eventually he stood up and stepped away from the bed, his mind already racing. There was only one person he could think to call right now.
He pulled out his phone and dialed Corvine’s number. It rang once, twice, three times with no answer. He was about to hang up when the line finally clicked.
"Alpha Voren..." Corvine’s voice came through groggy, like he’d been yanked out of the deepest sleep possible. A yawn followed, then quick concern. "Did something happen to Sera?"
Voren opened his mouth to respond, but the words never made it out. His eyes locked onto the doorway instead. Every muscle in his body went tight. Someone was standing there—a shadowy figure, completely silent, just watching.
The sight triggered every Alpha instinct he had. Voren’s face hardened as he kept his gaze fixed on the dark silhouette. "Hold on," he said, his voice low, controlled, and dangerously calm.
Voren lowered the phone from his ear and fixed a cold, steady stare in that direction. ƒrēewebnovel.com
"Jasmine."
His voice wasn’t loud, but it carried that natural authority that made people straighten up without even thinking about it.
A few seconds ticked by before the door pushed open wider, revealing Jasmine fully under the hallway light. Her long red hair was all messy from sleep, tumbling wildly around her shoulders, and the thin nightgown she had on left almost nothing to the imagination.
The sight instantly darkened Voren’s expression.
Meanwhile, Corvine’s sleepy voice kept drifting through the phone. "Voren?"
Voren pulled his gaze away from Jasmine just long enough to bring the phone back to his ear. "I need your help."
Corvine let out a dramatic groan, the kind that made it crystal clear just how wiped out he was. "Please don’t tell me you’re calling ’cause you can’t sleep." Another yawn cut through. "I’m barely functioning right now." Yet another yawn followed. "There’s so much work piled up for me tomorrow, especially with Sera not around."
Just hearing Seraphine’s name eased some of the tension in Voren’s shoulders. "She’s fine."
That single statement woke Corvine up instantly. The change was so abrupt that Voren almost chuckled. "What? She’s fine?"
"She’s perfectly fine," Voren confirmed.
Relief poured through Corvine’s voice. "Thank the Goddess."
Voren leaned back a little. "She’ll be at the office tomorrow, so don’t go making any extra problems for her before I get there." ƒreewebɳovel.com
Corvine pretty much ignored the second half of that. The excitement had already taken over. "Wait—does that mean the remedy actually worked?" The questions started flying out one after another. "How did it work? What exactly did you do? Can you teach me?"
Voren pinched the bridge of his nose. He should’ve seen this coming.
Corvine’s enthusiasm only grew. "I should tell my parents about it." He laughed. "No, actually, don’t tell me. Tell me in person. I can save all the details for later." Then he kept rambling excitedly. "When I fall in love one day, I’ll be totally prepared."
That finally pulled a real chuckle out of Voren. "Trust me, your parents already know."
Corvine immediately got suspicious. "What does that mean?"
"It means exactly what it sounds like," Voren said casually. "Your parents know the answer."
The silence on the other end barely lasted two seconds. "Then why haven’t they told me?" The outrage in Corvine’s voice nearly made Voren laugh and he finally understood why Seraphine was so fond of Corvine.
"Because some lessons are way more entertaining when you discover them yourself."
"That’s not fair."
"It wasn’t supposed to be."
Corvine started muttering complaints under his breath as Voren glanced back toward Jasmine and decided it was time to wrap things up. "Save your questions. I’ll explain everything when I get there."
Corvine clearly wanted to argue, but Voren ended the call before he could get another word in.
The moment the line went dead, all the warmth from the conversation vanished from Voren’s face. His expression hardened again as his attention returned fully to Jasmine.
His gaze moved slowly from her face down to the thin material barely covering her body, then back up to her eyes.
"There are rules in this house," he said, the disappointment clear in his tone. "What exactly is this?"
Jasmine’s fingers tightened around the edge of the doorway. She lowered her head right away, slipping into that guilty posture that would’ve looked convincing if Voren didn’t know her so well.
"I’m sorry," she said softly. "I didn’t know you were here." The explanation came too fast like she’d already rehearsed it. "I was only checking on Mari. I noticed the light was still on and wanted to see if she’d fallen asleep so I could turn it off."
Voren kept staring at her without saying anything, so she rushed to keep going. "She seemed bored earlier. She wanted some time alone, so I left her room."
It all sounded reasonable enough on the surface, but Voren knew exactly how Jasmine operated. For years now, she’d used that innocent act like a shield whenever she got cornered. A lot of people still bought it, but he didn’t anymore. Besides, that wasn’t even the real issue here.
His eyes narrowed slightly. How many times had he made himself clear? How many conversations had they already had about this exact thing? The frustration showed all over his face.
"This ends now."
