He waved her off, already pressing buttons on the remote again.
We stepped back into the hallway. Rosemary exhaled through her nose, then reached up to retie her ponytail, fingers precise.
“It’s fine,” she said, before I could speak. “I’ll get the next one.”
I stopped walking.
Rosemary took two more steps before she realized I was not beside her anymore. She turned, eyebrows lifting in question.
“It’s not fine,” I said. My voice stayed even, but there was no mistaking the edge under it. “And you don’t have to pretend it is.”
She glanced down the hall, checking who might be within earshot. “Nicole.”
“He didn’t even try to hide it,” I continued. “Everyone knows they’re together.”
Her mouth tightened. “This is how it works sometimes.”
“No,” I said. “This is how it works when no one calls it out.”
She studied my face for a beat, then gave a short shake of her head. “Don’t do this.”
I stepped closer, lowering my voice. “You deserved that rotation.”
She looked away, eyes catching on a stain in the tile that had probably been there longer than both of us. “I’m not burning bridges.”
The word bridges hit somewhere tender. I thought of Landon, of all the times he had told me to let it go, that it was not worth the fight. Of the nights I sat in the third row at center ice, watching him track the game with a focus that had nowhere to go now but inward.
Five games into the Finals, and he was still in a suit.
“I’ll talk to Parker,” I said.
Rosemary’s head snapped back toward me. “Nicole.”
“I’m not asking for your permission,” I said. “I’m doing it.”
Her shoulders dropped a fraction. “She’s going to ask questions.”
“Good. She should’ve been asking them before all this.”
She hesitated, then nodded once. “We’ve got 414 next.”
We kept moving.
Room 414 needed a dressing change, the incision clean but angry, edges still tender. Rosemary gathered supplies while I explained the process to the patient, keeping my tone calm, myhands steady. The routine anchored me even as my thoughts stayed sharp and fixed.
James had always known how to make things sound reasonable. He talked about merit and timing and opportunity, all while positioning himself exactly where he benefited most. He had done it with me. He had done it to Landon.
I finished securing the new dressing and disposed of the old one, stripping my gloves off as Rosemary typed her notes.
“I’ll meet you at the desk,” she said quietly.
I nodded and headed down the hall toward the nurses’ station, my pulse ticking faster with every step.
Parker was standing near the medication room, reviewing a schedule on her tablet, glasses perched low on her nose. She looked up as I approached.
“Nicole,” she said. “What’s up?”
“I need a minute,” I replied.
