Ulterior Motive

Harriet hadn’t lied. She knew how to properly bandage wounds. However, her concern for Elias and Callie had her a bit heavy-handed and distracted during this task. ‘Ow! It hurts!’ Dylan complained. ‘I’m being very careful here,’ Harriet retorted. Nonetheless, Dylan was unimpressed and began to pull his T-shirt down. ‘Your skills are worse than Dr Hawthorne’s. If you continue to treat my wound with this attitude of yours, I will not hesitate to ask Dr Hawthorne to come back here.’ Dylan was making a veiled threat, which irked Harriet. She had put in a lot of effort to get Elias alone with Callie, and she wasn’t going to let Dylan mess it up. ‘Don’t,’ she told him, regaining her composure. ‘Okay, I will be gentler.’ Harriet moved in closer to Dylan, lowered her face, and blew gently on the wound before skilfully applying the bandage around his sturdy waist. Throughout the process, Dylan didn’t focus on his own injury; his attention was directed at Harriet in front of him. She wasn’t wear