Page 10 of Rival Hearts

Riley could definitely see where and why they clashed. Riley was good at her job, but she was a risk-taker. She didn’t always like to do things the proper way, and she hated jumping through hoops to do what she knew needed to be done.

Jett was definitely the opposite. Riley could tell that she didn’t like risk, but to Riley, surgery was all risk. She enjoyed the risk, and sometimes she did struggle knowing where to pull back and where to push ahead, but she did care about her patients. More than anything, Riley cared about her patients. But she also knew that sometimes a risky surgery gave them their best shot.

Jett could complain about Riley’s methods all she liked, but Riley listened to her patients and her own observations before she would listen to someone else. But Riley couldn’t deny that Jett’s own methods were admirable. She was definitely passionate about her job and Riley could respect that.

She found herself glancing at Jett’s focussed dark eyes above her mask at breaks in the surgery. Jett’s concentration was intense. It might not have been usual procedure to take a paramedic into the OR, but Jett didn’t care so much as that. She knew she worked in a teaching hospital and Dr. Mars would always support learning opportunities for staff.

When the surgery was done, Riley breathed a sigh of relief. It looked like Dennis would have a full recovery.

Dennis’ wife and kids were in the surgery waiting room, along with a group of other people. Riley knew that some of those people were going to be receiving bad news, but she tried not to focus on that. She decided to focus on the good news that she was going to give.

As expected, Dennis’ family was very grateful, but Riley was ready to get back out of that room. She needed to get back to the Emergency Room to help with more patients, to get more people back to surgery.

However, when Riley walked out of the room and into the hallway, Jett was standing next to the door, staring into space. As Riley walked into the hallway, Jett’s eyes found hers and Jett raised her hand as if to stop her.

“Yes?” Riley asked, noticing how Jett’s short dark hair framed her face and exposed her intense brown eyes, which almost stared into Riley’s soul. Riley felt uncomfortable yet intrigued.

“I think I was wrong about you,” Jett said.

“You think?” Riley asked, crossing her arms and taking a step closer to Jett.

“You did a good job in there,” Jett said, “and I know how much that man needed his arm.”

“Dennis,” Riley said.

“What?” Jett asked.

“His name was Dennis,” Riley said. “Not ‘that man.’ And the thing is, I know that because I care about my patients, and I want what’s best for them. I learn all of their names, and I do my damndest to make sure they make it out of that operating room alive.”

“I care about my patients, too,” Jett said.

“I was never the one who said you didn’t,” Riley said, unable to get Jett’s criticisms out of her head.

“I’m sorry,” Jett said. “I was wrong.”

Riley frowned. She definitely wasn’t expecting the other woman to apologize. Riley expected Jett to be as hard-headed as she was, and hearing that apology shocked her. “Oh,” Riley said, uncrossing her arms.

She felt slightly exposed, but after the apology, she didn’t feel as much of a need to be guarded around Jett.

“You’re a good doctor,” Jett said, staring directly into Riley’s eyes with a heated gaze. “Forgive me?”

“Okay,” Riley said, something that was hard for her. She held grudges like nobody’s business, but there was something about the other woman that made her want to move on. Besides, she was tired of being angry, and there was something about Jett that intrigued her. She was unable to put her finger on what exactly it was, but she didn’t want to move away from Jett.

But she couldn’t let go of what had upset her the most. “I’m not a fame chaser,” Riley said.

Jett looked at her in shock, like she didn’t remember what she said the last time they met.

“You said that I was more concerned with getting fame than caring for my patients,” Riley said, “and I know I have a reputation, but it comes from caring about my patients, not dismissing them or using them as tools to propel my career. I’ve met people like that, and I’m not one of them. I have my reputation because I’m a good surgeon, and doctors who don’t care about their patients aren’t good surgeons.”

Jett nodded and frowned. Riley’s voice showed pain and raw emotion. She didn’t like being vulnerable, but Jett’s accusations struck her right in the heart and she couldn’t shake them.

“Like I said,” Jett said, “I was wrong about you. I couldn’t see past the risk you were taking to see the people you wanted to help. I’m sorry.”

Riley felt immense relief to hear that. She wasn’t sure why Jett’s opinion mattered so much to her, but it did. Usually, Riley was a fuck-it-all kind of woman. She didn’t care what other people thought as long as she knew that she was doing the right thing. But with Jett it was different—and that both thrilled and terrified her.

The two of them stood there for a moment, looking into one another’s eyes. Until Riley’s pager went off.

“Shit,” Riley said, checking her pager, “I have to get going.”

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