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support to the patently inadequate undergarments supplied by the Women s Army
Corp. The leather in place, she smoothed the rough linen of her uniform dress,
marveling at the feel of it. On the one hand, it was the first new dress she d ever
owned. On the other, it was an ugly thing, all rough olive fabric made for
durability rather than fashion.
A junior officer strode from the building, his purpose obvious in every step, his
bearing military and correct. His hair was cropped too close to tell his natural
color, showing him to be a recent graduate of one of the academies. His shoulders
bore the single gold bar of a junior lieutenant and the mailed fist of Mechanical
command.
The lieutenant s eyes met hers, and he nodded with perfunctory respect. It was
the greeting of a proper gentleman to a lady of unknown provenance but proper
bearing. Silently, she thanked him for that small favor. A moment later, she saw
his gaze drop away from her face, drawn like lodestone to a magnet. Leigh
watched as he realized how disrespectful he was being and snapped his gaze back
to hers. He realized she could tell he d been staring and looked away, abashed.
Then, as if against his will, his gaze crept back toward her.
The fact that he d stopped walking entirely was a sign of his distraction. He
thought of himself as a gentleman; when he realized he d begun staring again, he
locked his gaze on her eyes. Then his gaze wandered again. He had begun to show
the look of disbelief so familiar to Leigh. Her dusky skin didn t blush easily, but
once it started, it was impossible to stop. She felt the warmth in the swell of her
breast, knowing that within seconds it would crest her collar and rush across her
face.
Desperate to distract him, she rustled the orders in her hands. Desperate for
her distraction, the young would-be gentleman snapped his attention to the orders.
Recognizing them instantly for what they were, he glanced at the tabs on her
shoulders that mirrored his own, save hers bore the twin turreted castle of an
Engineer.
Ma am? Are you lost?
His voice matched the rest of him. Strong, confident, with just the faintest hint
of affected ennui to give the impression that no matter what crisis lurked, he had
seen worse. Her plight hadn t moved him; he realized she had caught him staring,
and was trying to find an excuse for his rudeness. Were she one of the Ladies
she d so often wished to be, his thin ruse would never have worked. Leigh,
however, had no such claim to gentle heritage.
No, Sir, I am not. I have been ordered to report directly to General March at
noon today.
His condescending chuckle sped the blush across her face. Between the blush,
the heat of the day, and the constriction of her belts, she was rapidly becoming
lightheaded.
Miss, your promptness does you credit. It s only half-past eleven. However,
you re quite obviously inexperienced with how these things work. When you re
ordered to report to the commander, you report to the headquarters, not the
commander s office.
Oh? Really? I m so thankful you were here to correct me, Sir. Could I
perhaps impose upon you for directions, then?
The look of barely suppressed consternation on his face was worth the
additional time spent in his company, Leigh decided.
Lieutenant Sebastian Cole at your service, Miss?
Lieutenant Leigh Abrams, Sir. You do, I suspect, have me by date of rank.
That s how these things are done, am I right?
Yes, his consternation might be her only compensation for the stares today, so
she would enjoy it while it lasted.
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