I wake up with a smile on my face, letting everything over the weekend escape my mind. Today’s a new day and the first day of my new job.

When I did my residency in Houston, my father and sister had already made a name for themselves. I was constantly compared to them and lived in their shadows, but not anymore.

New town. New job. New me.

At least that’s what I’m telling myself. I know I’m good at my job, but people treated me like I was fragile. Being Dr. Jason Bell’s daughter meant my father knew about everything I did—good and bad. I couldn’t slip up without it getting back to him even though I worked in a different department and on a different floor.

Though I consider myself knowledgeable in my field, everyone being in my business, knowing my failures and successes, made me want to branch out and be on my own. Work in a hospital where no one knows my family or history. I want to be treated just like everyone else—no favoritism or special treatment. I want to prove to him, and more importantly, myself, that I’m capable of living up to the expectations all on my own.

When I caught my ex cheating four months ago, it was the last push I needed to make the change. I’d been thinking about it ever since I finished my residency, but because my father waved around his magic wand and got me a permanent job at the hospital, I felt guilty for wanting to leave and pursue another job. But I wasn’t letting fear keep me there anymore. My dad heard the rumors before I could even tell him about my ex, and once I told him I needed a fresh start, he gave me his blessing, and I applied to San Angelo General Hospital the next day.

Moving from a large, busy city to a small town is an adjustment, to say the least, but I think it’ll grow on me. I’ve already slipped up and had a random one-night stand, so I’m more determined than ever to focus solely on my career and find new roots here. The weekend is still a blur, and I’m ready to forget it ever happened.

I chuckle and shake my head at Kiera’s messages. After Saturday morning’s escapades of waking up in a stranger’s room and stealing his clothes, Kiera spent the rest of the weekend with me. Mostly because she wanted to help me figure out who the mystery man was, but it’d be our last weekend to hang out for quite a while. Spring and summer are a busy time of year for her horse training business, and my hours at the hospital will be unreliable.

Once my adrenaline slowed down and we were back at my place, I finally got the scoop from Kiera about where she ended up the night before. Dr. Trent Laken is an equine vet who specializes in horses and has been Kiera’s family vet for years. On top of training horses, they have a ranch for showing horses and trail riding. He’s also the Bishop’s vet, which explains why he was at the wedding. They ran into each other and had some drinks before Trent whisked her away. According to Kiera, though I’m not sure I completely believe her, they only talked all night long, and she ended up falling asleep in the bed of his truck.

I couldn’t even be mad at her for ditching me because any chance of her getting over Jackson and finding a decent man has my approval. I don’t know Jackson well enough to form a real opinion about him, but I’ve seen how crazy he’s made Kiera over the years, and if he hasn’t made a move on her yet, he’s never going to. I’d rather she find someone who makes her happy so she can get over him once and for all.

Dropping my phone on my bed, I walk to my full-length mirror and look over my outfit again. Cream blouse, black pencil skirt, and red heels to match my bold lipstick. My hair is pulled back into a sleek ponytail, and I forgo my contacts and wear my black-rimmed glasses instead. Normally I’d be wearing scrubs with my lab coat, but I have orientation with the director this morning before I meet up with the department supervisor.

I packed my bag last night, so all I need is my purse before heading out. It’s barely eight o'clock in the morning, and I have a thirty-minute commute to get to the hospital. Grabbing my to-go cup of coffee, I swing my bag and purse over my shoulder and lock up before walking to my car.

My father calls me while I’m driving and wishes me luck on my first day. I tell him thanks, and I thank him again for everything he’s done and taught me. He still wishes I would’ve stayed but understands why it was time for me to do this.

The hospital is much smaller than the one I’d been working at. I knew this beforehand but seeing it now in person makes it real. This hospital specializes in trauma, which makes sense considering it’s the only medical facility for miles. Every trauma or patient flown by Flight for Life gets brought here. It’s one of the reasons I specifically applied here.

I make my way to the help desk, and the receptionist directs me to where I need to go. My nerves escalate, and my palms sweat as I make my way up the staircase.

Dr. Abbott greets me with a smile and ushers me into his office. He goes over my contract and all the specific details about the hospital and my position. He’s the only one who knows who my father is and where I came from—information I don’t plan on sharing with anyone else here.

“Here are your new lab coats.” He hands me a stack of folded coats in plastic. They have the hospital name and logo on one side with Dr. Bell embroidered on the other side. Smiling, I thank him and press the stack to my chest while I try to hold on to everything else. “Dr. Umbridge is the department supervisor, and he should be here to go through protocols and specifics with you. I’m sure we do things a bit different here than in Houston.” He flashes me a wink, and I know he’s probably right. Though I’m well practiced in medicine, each hospital has their own procedures and protocols, which is one thing I’m actually nervous about. Over the years, I’ve only had to learn things one specific way because I was hired at the hospital where I completed my residency, so breaking the rules that were ingrained into me won’t be easy.

“Thank you again,” I tell him, shaking his hand. “I look forward to working here.”

“You’ll fit right in, dear. We’re always understaffed and even more so since Dr. Lockhart retired.” He winks again, and I take that as my cue to leave before things get weird.

I make my way out of his office and downstairs, then head to the ER unit. It’s actually quite large, considering the size of the hospital, which both terrifies and excites me.

Once I step inside, I ask one of the nurses for the supervisor, and she directs me to a tall man who’s reading through charts. I excuse myself and let him know who I am, and by the wide smile on his face, I can tell he’s been expecting me.

“Nice to meet you, Dr. Bell.” He shakes my hand and smiles while his eyes lazily roam over my body. I shiver, second-guessing my outfit. I wanted to look professional, but now I’m wondering if I should’ve gone the muumuu route instead.

“You, too, Dr. Umbridge. I’m excited to be here.” I pull my hand away and slide it down my skirt.

“I’ll show you to the lockers where you can place your belongings, then you’ll be training with Dr. Bishop till you’re familiar with our procedures.”

“Oh, I won’t be working with you?” I ask, puzzled.

“No, I’m leaving for vacation tomorrow, so Dr. Bishop will be in charge till my return.”

“Oh, got it.” I follow him into a room and choose an empty locker bin for my bags. I rip open one of the lab coat bags and slide it over, relieved that it fits nicely. I brought my dark blue scrubs with me just in case, but I’m not exactly sure what I’ll be doing today, so I don’t change into them just yet.

“Dr. Bishop is on the fourth floor checking on a patient. You can head up there and let him know you’re here. He should be expecting you.”

He leads me to the elevators and asks if I have any questions before I step in. I have so many, starting with who Dr. Bishop is and if he’s from the same Bishop family I just met over the weekend. It’d be nice to know someone or at least recognize a familiar face, though I probably wouldn’t remember anyway. Not after the number of drinks I had.

I thank Dr. Umbridge again before the doors slide closed, and I inhale a deep breath. I can do this. New beginnings, I remind myself.

The elevator doors slide open to the pediatrics unit. It’s quiet with only a handful of employees standing near the nurses’ station.

“Excuse me,” I say softly to the woman sitting behind the desk. She looks up at me and smiles. “Could you tell me where Dr. Bishop is by chance? I was told he’s up here.” She narrows her eyes at me suspiciously, obviously not recognizing or knowing who I am. “I’m the new ER doctor, and he’s supposed to be showing me around,” I explain to ease her concern.

“Oh! Welcome!” Her mood changes instantly. “Dr. Bishop is actually right over there. The tall one with blond hair.” She nods to the right, pointing him out with her finger, and when I follow her eyes, my heart drops.

No fucking way.

“The dreamy one,” she mutters under her breath with a sigh, though I’m sure she didn’t mean for me to hear that last part.

I swallow, blinking, and do my best to hold my composure. Just because my one-night stand also happens to be Dr. Bishop doesn’t mean things have to get weird.

Oh, who the hell am I kidding?

The second I glance at him, I immediately recognize him. All the questions that swirled in my mind since Saturday morning were now answered. It wasn’t the other random groomsmen I hooked up with; it was Alex’s oldest brother, Evan Bishop.

Fucking hell.

I smile, pushing back all my emotions as I walk toward him. He’s standing with a few nurses in light blue scrubs, and the moment his eyes meet mine, he crosses his arms over his broad chest. Fuck. He recognizes me too. And he’s pissed.

Regret sets in on the way I handled things the morning after, but maybe with any hope, we can get past it and move on.

“Emily? That’s real cute.”

Guess not.

His deep voice makes his words sound like a scolding, and that’s when I remember I gave him a fake name. He has every right to hate me, especially for stealing his clothes, but I’m not going to let him treat me like shit for walking out on him after a hookup. I don’t owe him anything except his tux, which I already gave to Kiera to take back to the shop.

I suck in a deep breath and release it slowly. “And you’re Dr. Bishop, aren’t you?” I’ve mastered the fake smile over the years of dealing with people, but I won’t let him get under my skin, and I most definitely won’t let him know he has the opportunity to with his attitude.

We battle in a stare down, neither of us speaking and the tension in the air getting thicker.

“Hi,” one of the women standing next to him blurts out, holding out her hand for me to shake it. “I’m River Bishop. Evan’s sister-in-law.”

I take her hand and smile. “Yes, I remember. I was at your wedding actually.” Our hands fall apart, and I wonder why the heck she’d be at work already, but I don’t get the chance to ask before she speaks up again.

“Wow, that makes a lot more sense.” She chuckles. “I was just giving Evan shit for his mystery girl.”

My brows shoot up. “His what now?”

“Don’t you have a job to do?” Evan’s deep voice booms, and his reaction tells me exactly what she’s talking about. Me.

“Come on, Amelia.” River smirks at the other woman standing by them, and together they walk off.

“Evan, I’m so—”

“You will address me by Dr. Bishop, Dr. Bell.” His scowl is permanently etched on his face, and his cold tone sends shivers down my spine.

“Right. Dr. Bishop, I’m so sorry for—”

He grabs my elbow before I can finish and leads me back to the elevator.

“Hey!” I jerk my arm out of his grip. “You can’t just manhandle me.”

“You want the entire floor to be in our business?” He perks a brow, and his mouth is in a firm line.

“Well, no.”

We step into the elevator, and Evan waits till the door closes before speaking again.

“Then watch what you say because everyone here is in everyone’s business. Small town, big mouths.”

“Oh, right.” I shake my head and close my eyes, needing to get my bearings back. “I’m sorry,” I blurt out. “I can explain if you give me a chance.” Maybe he’ll find it humorous once he realizes it was an innocent mistake? Doubtful.

Seconds pass, which feels like an eternity, and when the doors slide open, we’re back to the ER floor.

“No explanation needed, Dr. Bell.” He pinches his lips together before stepping out. “Let’s go.”

“Dr. Bishop…” A nurse approaches him with a medical computer cart. The name tag on her top pocket says Veronica, which I make a mental note of so I don’t forget. The sooner I learn everyone’s name, the sooner they won’t treat me like the newbie. “Four-year-old male came in with complaints of a stomachache, and his mother said she thinks he swallowed something, so we did X-rays.”

Evan stops walking to look at the films on the screen. “How long has he had a stomachache?” he asks, examining them.

“Three days,” Veronica answers.

“Looks like he’s swallowed multiple things. They should’ve worked their way through his digestive tract by now.”

I tilt my head and zoom in on the marble-shaped objects in his abdomen near his rib cage. There has to be at least ten of them.

“Does he have any allergies?” I ask without thinking. Evan stiffens next to me, obviously not happy with my interruption.

“Not that his mother knew,” Veronica responds even though she looks skeptical because of Evan’s body language.

“He needs an esophagoscopy. After two days, foreign objects can start to cause internal damage or an infection may set in if the body can’t pass them through the digestive tract or worse the longer they stay inside.”

“Thank you, Dr. Bell,” Evan clips, handing the screens back to the nurse. “But this is my patient. Prep him for a balloon catheter,” he directs to Veronica who nods at his demand.

“That’s too risky on a child,” I interrupt.

“Boundaries,” he growls. “Perhaps that needs to be your first lesson.”

I roll my eyes before he walks away. Struggling to keep up with him in heels, I yank his arm and am hardly able to pull him back. “Look, I know this is an awkward situation, but I’m not an idiot. I was at the top of my class and have worked with hundreds of kids during my residency. A four-year-old won’t be able to lie still during that procedure, especially if he’s already in pain and scared. If he moves, you could puncture his esophagus or something else.”

“You don’t know me well enough to underestimate my skills, and you’ll need to learn to respect my decisions, Dr. Bell. I won’t suggest putting a child under anesthesia if I don’t have to since that can lead to more complications. So if you’ll allow me to do my job, you can stand and watch how we do things here, or you can walk yourself out the front doors. Either way, I’m doing things my way, which will be the safest option for him.”

I swallow, his tone firm and harsh. His eyes narrow as he talks down to me. “We’re colleagues,” I argue, stupidly. “Aren’t we supposed to discuss the best options for patients without letting our caveman tendencies get in the way?” I challenge, propping my hands on my hips.

He brings a hand to his chin and rubs his palm over his five o’clock shadow, studying me with a crooked grin. “Let’s get this out of the way now, sweetheart. I’m your boss until Dr. Umbridge returns, and even then, we aren’t on equal playing fields. I’ve busted my ass for years to get here, and I won’t let you undermine my decisions. Are we clear?”

I swallow, my eyes narrowing at his condescending attitude. If this is how he wants to play this, then fine. I’ll suit up.

“Crystal clear, boss.”