Backup Choice

Elias heaved out a long sigh. He could relate. Less than half a year ago, he was exactly where Harriet was right now. But things had changed. ‘Harriet, do you genuinely like me?’ ‘Yeah.’ ‘Really? Do you even know what genuine affection feels like? Not a brotherly love, but a romantic love.’ Harriet frowned. ‘Hey, don’t treat me like I’m a wide-eyed maiden. For your information, I’ve had boyfriends before. I’ve slept with my share of—’ Elias raised a hand to stop her. ‘Okay, okay! I don’t need to hear the details.’ ‘You would know if you spent more time at home,’ Harriet muttered. Elias sighed. ‘Then why couldn’t you pick one of your many boyfriends to marry?’ ‘Nah.’ Harriet shook her head. ‘They are just a temporary distraction. Fun for a while, but I usually get bored after the second or third date. Besides, you know Uncle Hershel would never approve of any of them.’ ‘So I’m like a backup choice for you?’ ‘Not a backup. You are a safe choice.’ She added with a smirk, ‘An approved choice.’ ‘Fine, let’s do it this way, then.’ Elias closed the distance between them until the tips of his shoes touched hers. ‘What are you doing?’ Harriet moved her head back. He lifted her chin with a finger and stared into her eyes. ‘What do you feel right now?’ ‘Um, you are standing awfully close. You have a leaf in your hair. And you smoked.’ ‘Anything else?’ ‘Nope.’ He brushed a finger against her lips. ‘How about this? What do you feel now?’ ‘I feel like I want to punch you, but I can’t, because you are my superior.’ Elias placed a hand on her waist. Harriet moved instinctively, stepping back and grabbing his wrist with a swift move. She would have broken his bones if this were anyone but Elias. ‘What the hell are you doing?’ Elias let his hand fall to his side. ‘A test.’ ‘For what?’ ‘Would you break your boyfriend’s wrist if he tried to hug you?’ ‘Well, no, but that’s because he’s—’ ‘Your boyfriend. And I’m not.’ Elias looked at her. ‘You do love me, Harriet, but as a brother, not a boyfriend. Don’t let Uncle Hershel talk you into thinking otherwise.’ Instead of ‘talk,’ the word he really wanted to use was ‘brainwash,’ but Elias respected the general too much to badmouth him behind his back. Harriet processed her own reaction just now, then her shoulders slumped with the realisation. ‘Damn.’ ‘It’s a good thing you didn’t fall for me,’ Elias said. ‘So I didn’t have to break your heart.’ Harriet’s head snapped up. ‘You mean you would’ve turned me down even if I had romantic feelings for you?’ ‘Uh-huh.’ ‘Why?’ Harriet’s hackles rose. ‘Am I not good enough for you? Elias Westwood, you may outrank me, but I’ll have you know that I’ve got plenty of admirers outside the army. Just walk into any bar with me and you’ll see. Ten bucks say no less than five guys will offer to buy me a drink within the first half an hour.’ ‘Slow down.’ Elias shook his head, amused. ‘Will you let me finish?’ Harriet folded her arms and tilted her chin up. ‘Fine. I’m all ears.’ ‘It’s not you. You are perfectly fine. But my heart’s already taken.’ Harriet’s eyes widened. ‘Really? You are in love?’ Elias nodded. Harriet narrowed her eyes. ‘With a woman, right?’ Elias wasn’t in the habit of rolling his eyes, but he was tempted to do so now. ‘Yes, a woman.’ ‘A real, living, breathing woman. Not a woman like in the movies or novels? I’ve heard plenty of guys tell me they are in love with Scarlett O’Hara from Gone With The Wind.’ Elias pinched her cheek. ‘A real woman. Not a fictional character.’ Harriet studied his face closely. When she realised he wasn’t joking, she stepped forward and slapped him on the arm. ‘Wow, that’s huge! Headline news! Why didn’t you tell me earlier?’ ‘You didn’t exactly give me a chance to talk.’ Harriet’s eyes gleamed with intrigue. ‘Who is it? Is it someone I know? Someone from the army? Or the air force?’ ‘Someone you know, but not from the military.’ ‘Who?’ ‘Callie.’ ‘Callie?’ Harriet gaped at him. ‘Callie Hawthorne?’ ‘How many Callies do you know?’ ‘Just the one. A doctor I met here. She’s cute.’ Harriet was about to congratulate Elias when something struck her. ‘Wait, Callie told me she’s already married. You are not thinking of breaking up a marriage, are you?’ Elias heaved out a huge sigh. He rapped a knuckle on her forehead. ‘Ouch!’ ‘When they recruited you into the air force, did they forget to give you an IQ test?’ ‘Hey! I passed all my tests with flying colours! And my IQ’s ranked above average!’ ‘What’s the average? A racoon’s IQ?’ Harriet delivered a jab at Elias’s stomach, which he blocked with both fists and countered with a left hook. The two of them traded sparring blows for a while before Elias caught Harriet’s wrists and pinned her. ‘That’s enough. I didn’t come here to brawl.’ She stomped her heel on his shoe, eliciting a wince from him. ‘That’s for trying to go after a married woman.’ Elias let out an exasperated chuckle. ‘Has it ever occurred to you that Callie’s husband is me?’ ‘Really?’ Harriet wasn’t convinced. ‘Why would I lie about something like that?’ Harriet was confused. ‘But…’ ‘We’ve been married since last month, long before you came here.’ Confusion morphed into astonishment. ‘How come you didn’t tell me?’ ‘You were flying a mission, remember? I couldn’t reach you.’ ‘What about Uncle Hershel? Does he know?’ ‘He knows I want to marry Callie, but doesn’t know the marriage is already official.’ ‘Then why didn’t he tell me?’ Harriet paced in front of the poplar tree. ‘You know he sent me here to, ahem, to try to win you over, right?’ Elias nodded. ‘Why would he do that when he knows you are already involved with someone else?’