Semua Bab The General's Contract Bride: Bab 1 - Bab 10

"The intelligence report?" I repeated, my voice barely a squeak. Alexander didn't blink. "My father mentioned you. Your father mentioned you. I prefer to gather my own intel." Before I could figure out how to respond to being treated like a military reconnaissance mission, the waiter returned. He practically vibrated with nervous energy as he set Alexander’s salmon down, followed by my pasta. Finally, with shaking hands, the waiter placed a small, steaming porcelain teapot directly in front of me. "Your chamomile tea, miss," the waiter murmured before speed-walking away. I stared at the teapot. I hadn't ordered it. Alexander had. I risked a glance up at him through my lashes. He was already cutting into his salmon with practiced, efficient movements. Did he order it because he noticed my hands were shaking? Did the Commander of the Armed Forces actually care about my anxiety? The warm, soothing scent of the chamomile drifted up, and surprisingly, the tight knot in my chest loos

"Dad! Dad, please, wake up!"I dropped to my knees so hard the impact sent a painful shockwave up my legs. My hands flew to his shoulders, shaking him. His head lolled lifelessly against the kitchen cabinets. His lips were already turning a terrifying shade of blue. All my nursing school training completely vanished, replaced by the raw, blinding panic of a terrified daughter. My trembling fingers scrambled for my phone on the counter. I dialed 911, screaming our address at the dispatcher before hanging up and frantically dialing the only other person I trusted. She picked up on the first ring. *"Hey, I was just about to—"*"Mia!" I sobbed, pressing two trembling fingers to my dad's neck. His pulse was impossibly weak, fluttering like a dying bird. "Mia, it's his heart! He collapsed!"*"I'm on my way,"* Mia’s voice instantly dropped all its usual chaos, turning to pure, focused steel. *"I’m calling a cab. I will meet you at the hospital. Keep breathing, Grace. Keep him breathing!"*

The interior of the armored SUV was incredibly quiet. The thick, bulletproof glass completely blocked out the sound of the pouring rain and the chaotic city traffic. The General picked me up from my home by 8;am to go see his grandmother I sat rigidly in the backseat, clutching my damp jacket. General Alexander Reeves sat exactly two feet away from me. He took up so much space. He wasn't doing it on purpose, but his broad shoulders and the sheer, dominating energy rolling off him made the spacious backseat feel like a tiny, suffocating box. I swallowed hard. We were heading to his grandmother's estate. I needed to know what I was walking into. I needed to be brave. I was twenty-two, a nursing student, and about to pretend to be the fiancée of the most terrifying man in the country. I squared my shoulders, gripping my knees. "G-General?" He didn't look at me. His eyes remained fixed on the secure military tablet in his lap. "Alexander." I blinked. "What?" "If we are engaged, yo

The third-floor hallway of the nursing building was absolute chaos, as usual. It was Monday morning. Students rushed in every direction, heavy backpacks swinging, voices overlapping into one giant, panic-induced wall of noise that I had learned to tune out years ago. The smell of cheap vending-machine coffee and sterile floor cleaner hung heavily in the air. I ducked under a stressed-out student's elbow and made it to my dented metal locker, spinning the combination with practiced ease. "Grace!" I didn't even need to turn around. "Morning, Mia." Mia Chen appeared beside me like she had been physically teleported through the floorboards. Her dark hair was bouncing in a high ponytail, her bright purple scrubs were somehow perfectly unwrinkled, and her eyes were wide with the kind of chaotic energy that should have been illegal before 8:00 AM. "You will not believe what happened last night," Mia announced, leaning against the locker next to mine with her arms crossed and a wicked

My heartbeat refused to cooperate. It hammered against my ribs. A frantic, erratic rhythm.I followed the broad line of Alexander’s shoulders down a quiet hallway. The corridor was lined with framed military photographs. Medals locked away in pristine glass cases. And quiet landscape paintings that seemed to be trying—and failing—to soften the severe, disciplined aura of the floor.The silence between us wasn't uncomfortable. It was... thick.Heavy. Like every footstep echoed a little too loudly.Like the air itself was holding its breath. We stopped outside a massive, dark wooden door. Alexander pushed it open with effortless ease. He stepped aside, his tall frame taking up entirely too much space. "After you." I hesitated for half a second. My lungs tight. Then, I forced myself to walk in.The office was spacious but surprisingl