MIDNIGHT Bride The CEO's TEMPTATION

"Yes," Joshua gently tucked her hair behind her ears, "Hazel, you will never know how much you mean to me."

She was relieved. Although, she could not tell whether it was Joshua's heartfelt words or if he was just said it to soothe her since he was convinced that she was Denmark's daughter. However, it still eased her worries to hear it.

"I believe you." She smiled.

Joshua's eyes were a little deeper. He sighed. "You, silly girl, you don't completely believe me… But it doesn't matter because time will tell."

***

Hazel thought things would settle down for a bit, so she was surprised when James arrived at Denmark Residence the next day.

"Have you found a bodyguard?" Joshua frowned a little because he only saw James.

"You can rest assured," said James coldly. "Or you can ask someone else for help."

Joshua shrugged. "Alright, what are you doing here then?"

"Major General wants to meet Hazel," said James quietly.

"Me?" Hazel looked around blankly before she said nervously, "Why, why does he need to meet me? I don't know your general, after all…."

James explained, "Don't think too much of it. I think you will just be asked about Simon King..."

"How can Hazel know about that?" Joshua quickly interrupted James with a displeased tone.

"I'm looking for the best bodyguard." James said in a deep tone, "Don't worry, our major general is not going to bully her and only wants to know some simple information about Simon. Besides, I'll keep her company."

Joshua raised his eyebrows. "Do you mean I can't go?"

"Major General hasn't wanted to see strangers in years. Sorry…" James said a bit helplessly. It was the first time Hazel had heard James be so gentle when talking to Joshua. 

"Is the major general you are speaking of one of those people?" Joshua was deep in thought.

"... Mmm." James looked a little gloomy. He had always known about Joshua's abilities and means, but he felt that was Joshua extremely incomprehensible since he had known so much.

"Who?" Hazel asked blankly.

"You'll know when you are there," said Joshua, looking relieved. "You can go with James and feel comfortable."

She was very confused. Seeing that they didn't want to say much, she had to leave Denmark Residence with James, with her heart full of doubts. She expected James to take her to a military compound or something, but eventually, he took her to a tastefully decorated teahouse.

James took her to the private room and opened the door for her. As soon as Hazel walked in, she was so shocked that she stood still. A beautiful woman seemed to be in her thirties, but Hazel felt that her true age was much older.

Her temperament showed the military's unique determination, morality, and fierceness. However, she also looked like an educated, cultured lady. With the combination of exceptional traits, she gained people's trust. 

"General Sanchez." James saluted. "This is Hazel."

"Though you're a soldier under my guidance," Katherine Sanchez waved gracefully, "you don't need to be restrained. You'd better keep a low profile. Guard us outside."

"Yes." James agreed and walked out of the room.

"Female, female general?" Hazel was surprised. There was no doubt that the woman in front of her was the major general James had mentioned.

She had thought that the major general James was talking about was a man, but instead, it was a fearless female general. Hazel admired her.

"Very surprised?" Katherine smiled gently.

"Mmm!" Hazel nodded her head in excitement, but then she felt it seemed impolite, so she quickly stopped.

Katherine was amused by her and thought the girl in front of her was really cute.

"Come and sit down," Katherine said kindly.

"Okay." Hazel sat beside her in a hurry, but suddenly her face changed. She looked at Katherine in disbelief. "Your last name is Sanchez… So are you General Katherine Sanchez?"

"Do you know me?" Katherine was a bit surprised.

"Yes, yes!" Hazel's eyes were shining brightly as she said happily, "You're my mom's idol. When I was a kid, my mom always told me about you. She said that you made a great contribution to eliminating one of the biggest, evil forces, and then you were promoted to major general, step by step."

"She also said that there were few major female generals originally, and you are the real female hero. You are like an idol to my family. Can I take a photo with you? I want to send a picture to my mom…"

Katherine saw how Hazel kept chattering, she was like a child who saw a celebrity, Katherine smiled lovingly and agreed, "Yes."

Hazel excitedly took out her phone and sat next to Katherine obediently, taking several pictures. After saving the photos, Hazel laughed very happily.

Suddenly, something occurred to her, and she hastily asked, "Was it the organization that you destroyed that year? So, were you the undercover agent there?"

Katherine's face changed slightly. Hazel came to her senses immediately and felt very remorseful. She didn't realize what she was saying, her mother didn't even know what was happening that year. It was apparently a secret related to Katherine's safety, she didn't mean to blurt it out at Katherine.

Hence, she hurried to add, "I'm sorry. I'm just curious. I don't mean anything else. You don't need to answer me…"

"Yes. But I didn't think you knew that." Katherine smiled lightly. "Was it Simon who told you?"

"He told me some of it..." Hazel said, embarrassed. "And there's some of it guessed by myself."

Katherine looked at Hazel in surprise. She just asked her the question casually and never expected that Hazel actually meant so much to Simon. Additionally, she was surprised by Hazel's intelligence and mental alertness.

Katherine suddenly moved toward Hazel, she immediately put her hands up to block her. Katherine sat down quietly as if nothing had happened.

Hazel was a little confused. "General Sanchez…"

"Hazel, you obviously have a background in fighting, and you're in good shape," Katherine looked at her. "If you were trained, you'd be a good soldier. Are you interested in joining the army?"