Page 2 of The Beat of her Heart

Her eyes drifted to the small window. It overlooked the hospital’s courtyard, where a few trees lined the path that led to the patient garden. She’d asked for change, and that’s exactly what this was.

The door clicked open behind her.

“You settling in, Dr. Nova?” a voice asked from the doorway.

Giselle frowned.Nova.

She turned and saw a young woman, probably in her mid-thirties, standing there with a tablet. She had scrubs on, her ID badge clipped casually to the front pocket identifying her as Dr. M. Summers.

“It’s Dr. Carlisle,” Giselle said.

The doctor glanced at the door, then stepped inside.

“My apologies.”

Giselle nodded. The doctor cleared her throat uncomfortably as she stood in front of Giselle.

“Well, great. If you need anything, I’m down the hall. I’m Madeline Summers, by the way.”

She extended a hand, but Giselle didn’ttake it immediately. When she did reach out, it was a brief handshake.

“I’ll let you get back to it, then,” she said, then turned and left.

The door closed and the silence returned. Giselle didn’t miss the awkwardness. She’d expected it, almost welcomed it.

Small talk never interested her, and she wasn’t planning on changing that now. She moved toward the desk again, dragging her finger along the edges, her thoughts spinning.

Giselle sat down, the chair creaking slightly under her weight. She leaned back and stared at the blank wall in front of her.

She’d even changed her name to clarify the start of her new life, but nothing about this place, this room, made her feel any different.

Her phone buzzed. She glanced at it and saw a text from her mom, but didn’t open it. Instead, she tapped on it and hit delete.

Nothing she’d say would be enough to bring back Nicole. Giselle’s chest tightened. She shut her eyes and focused on the silence.

The hallway outside remained quiet, with only the occasional muffled conversationechoing faintly through the walls. There were no reminders of her past here, just an empty room and a new job.

Giselle closed her eyes for a moment, then opened them again.

This was her fresh start.

There was another knock on the door.

“Come in,” she said.

Dr. Josephine Mars walked inside, clutching a file in her hand. She was petite and immaculately dressed in a pencil skirt, blouse and heels. She was Head of the Hospital and her aura was a lot more imposing than her size would suggest. She flashed a wide smile at Giselle and walked over, her arms outstretched.

“Giselle.” Josephine wrapped her arms around her.

Giselle hugged her, smiling right back. Dr. Josephine Mars had been a friend of her father’s for a long time. Even after being transferred to Phoenix Ridge, she’d stayed in contact with their family.

Giselle never found it difficult to talk to her. Perhaps it was the fact that for someone who looked so much like her mom, with her blue eyes and light colored hair, she was aromantic at heart, unlike Giselle’s mom, who was a doctor on every count.

“It’s been a while,” she said.

Dr. Mars dropped the file on the desk and leaned against it. Giselle didn’t offer any more than that.

“A while?” Josephine chuckled. “I haven’t seen you in…what, five years?”

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