Chapter 3
3
MALLORY
M allory stepped into the bustling hallway of Phoenix Ridge Hospital, her heart pounding in a way she hadn’t expected. The sterile yet comforting scent of antiseptic filled the air as the hum of activity swirled around her—nurses rushing by, doctors conferring in quiet corners, the soft beep of monitors drifting from nearby rooms. She tried to steady herself, feeling the weight of anticipation and nerves settle in her chest. This was it, the beginning of a new chapter, a fresh start.
Her old hospital, the one where she’d spent years perfecting her craft, felt like a lifetime ago now. She’d left behind the familiar faces, the established routines. This was Phoenix Ridge, where everything was new—new patients, new colleagues, and most importantly, a new beginning for herself. For the first time in a while, she felt like she was shedding an old skin, ready to become something new.
Dr. Josephine Mars, her new mentor and Head of the Hospital, spent her hours keeping Phoenix Ridge Hospital running, but she had welcomed Mallory with a warm handshake and an even warmer smile. The older woman was confident, knowledgeable, and sharp, yet there was a kind, almost maternal energy about her that put Mallory at ease. She had guided Mallory through the hospital’s layout, pointing out the departments she’d be working with, the high-tech labs, the team of specialists who’d help her adjust to the fast pace of the hospital.
Mallory listened intently, her eyes scanning the sleek, modern equipment in each department they passed. The hospital felt cutting-edge, efficient, and alive with the kind of energy she hadn’t felt in years. There was a sense of purpose here, a shared drive to provide the best care possible.
Still, it was a lot to take in. Her mind buzzed with the challenge of it all—the procedures to memorize, the faces to remember, the expectations of her as the new addition to the team. But beneath that initial overwhelm, she felt a flicker of excitement, too. She could already tell that this place would challenge her in ways she hadn’t anticipated, but it would push her to grow. And that was something she needed after everything she’d left behind.
What she really loved about both Phoenix Ridge hospital and Phoenix Ridge the city was that it was all women in power. An all woman staff at the hospital and Mallory loved that. No more misogyny for her.
She had barely finished digesting the layout of the hospital when Dr. Mars took her into the staff lounge for a brief coffee break. It was a small but cozy space, with windows that looked out over the city, offering a view of the mountain range that surrounded Phoenix Ridge. It was a peaceful moment; one Mallory could appreciate in the midst of everything else that was happening.
As they sat, sipping their coffee and chatting about the day ahead, Mallory noticed movement from the corner of her eye. A commotion near the nurses’ station, a few voices rising over the usual background noise. She barely registered it at first, until she heard a familiar laugh. It was low and throaty, the kind of laugh that carried without effort, a sound that Mallory recognized all too well. A blast from the past, that was for sure.
Her heart skipped a beat. She felt like she was being plunged back many years. She turned her head, her eyes locking onto the tall, confident figure making its way down the hallway.
Ember Thompson.
Mallory froze. Her breath caught in her throat as her gaze followed Ember’s every movement. The woman was just as striking as Mallory remembered—tall, with an easy confidence that seemed to draw the attention of everyone around her. Her red hair was pulled back into a ponytail, and she wore the same relaxed, almost defiant masculine aura that had always made her stand out in a crowd.
Mallory felt a rush of emotions flood her—surprise, disbelief, and a deep, unmistakable ache in her chest. She hadn’t expected to run into her ex girlfriend here, even though, when she thought back, she knew Ember was from Phoenix Ridge. She’d left behind everything about her past—everything about the tumultuous, passionate short lived relationship they’d had many years ago—and moved here to start over. To put distance between herself and the things that had hurt her.
But here was Ember, striding into the hospital like it was the most natural thing in the world.
Ember’s sharp eyes scanned the room, her gaze landing on Mallory with surprising clarity. For a moment, it felt like the whole world fell away. The bustling hospital, the friendly chatter from nearby doctors, even the comforting buzz of the fluorescent lights overhead—all of it seemed to fade into the background.
Ember didn’t smile. She didn’t even raise an eyebrow. She just looked at Mallory as though she had known, deep down, that they would cross paths again eventually. The air between them was thick, charged with something unspoken. Recognition. Curiosity. Perhaps even a flicker of regret or bitterness from Ember’s side, though Mallory couldn’t be sure.
Mallory’s mind raced. She wasn’t ready for this. Not now, not here. The last time she’d seen Ember, things had ended in a flurry of words—angry, hurt words—that had made her vow never to go back to someone like Ember again. Reckless, impulsive, always putting herself in danger. Mallory couldn’t handle it. She couldn’t handle Ember’s behavior. It was too much.
Ember hadn’t been the one to let go. Mallory had walked away, brokenhearted but resolute. And now, seeing her standing there, so familiar and so foreign all at once, Mallory wasn’t sure how to feel. Their relationship was a million years ago, when they were both so young, but Mallory felt shaken like it was yesterday.
Ember’s lips twitched into something resembling a smirk as she slowly walked toward Mallory and Dr. Mars, the soft click of her boots on the polished tile echoing in the quiet hallway. Mallory stood frozen for a beat too long, her mind unable to catch up with her racing heart.
“Morning, Love,” Ember said, as she drew close to the pair.
“Wh—”
“Morning, Ember. I’m nearly done, don’t worry; I’ll be finished soon,” Dr. Mars replied, sending Mallory’s head into a spin. What was going on?
“Oh, Mallory, of course, you haven’t met. This is my wife, Ember. Ember, meet Doctor Mallory Storm. She’s transferred recently so I’m showing her around. Mallory, sorry, there’s something that needs my attention, I’ll be back in a second,” Josephine rattled a rapid pace before striding off to whatever new issue needed her.
Ember’s eyes never left Mallory, her gaze intense, appraising. For a brief, sharp moment, Mallory wondered if Ember could see right through her—the walls she’d built, the distance she’d placed between herself and her past. If she could sense the way Mallory’s pulse quickened in her chest, how her breath faltered the second their eyes met again.
“Mallory,” Ember said, her voice low and cool, carrying a familiarity that both comforted and unsettled Mallory all at once. “Didn’t expect to see you here.” She tilted her head slightly, studying Mallory with an almost clinical detachment. “It has been a long time. How are you finding working here?”
Mallory forced herself to stand a little taller, pushing back the rush of emotion that threatened to rise up. She hadn’t prepared for this moment, hadn’t expected to face one of the ghosts of her past ever again. But here they were, and Mallory couldn’t afford to let her discomfort show. Not here, not now.
“It’s fine. Busy.” Mallory’s voice remained steady, though there was a slight edge to her words. She leaned into her professional demeanor, determined not to let Ember see how much her presence was unsettling her. “But then, I imagine you’re used to that, given the kind of work you do.”
Ember was a firefighter. An impulsive, thrill seeking, risk taking Firefighter. She had been doing her training in the same city that Mallory was living in. Everything about Ember had been seductive, and yet dangerous.
Ember didn’t flinch at the jab. Instead, she leaned casually against the counter, her eyes locking onto Mallory with that familiar, steady gaze. It was the kind of look that made Mallory’s heart beat a little faster, the kind of look that had always made her feel like Ember could see straight through her, could read her thoughts before they ever left her mouth. The woman never had to try. She just knew.
Mallory hated it.
“ Used to do. I haven’t worked as a firefighter in over six years now. I help out on occasion, but nothing regular. Stopped once we had Natalie, our little girl. I spend most of my time fixing up old cars now when I’m not chasing after our little rascal.”
“Six years huh. I had no idea you were married. And to Dr. Mars, too.”
“Yep, got lucky there, though I wish the hours she had to work were shorter.”
The silence stretched between Mallory and Ember, thick with something unspoken, something that neither of them seemed eager to address. Mallory felt the old resentment rise up inside her like a tidal wave—raw, dangerous, and completely out of her control. She thought she had buried it; thought she had left it all behind when she’d walked away from Ember all those years ago. But now, here it was, flooding her mind again, reminding her why she had sworn off people like Ember in the first place.
“So, you finally moved to the incredible Phoenix Ridge. Good for you,” Ember said, her voice smooth and almost teasing, though her smile remained tight. “Nice to see you taking that ‘fresh start’ you always said you needed seriously finally.”
Mallory clenched her jaw, trying to hold back the words she knew were about to spill out. She hadn’t come to Phoenix Ridge to face this— her . She’d come here to escape, to find peace. But here Ember was, like a ghost from her past, stirring up old wounds she hadn’t even realized were still so raw.
“I’m here to do my job, Ember. Not to be a part of whatever drama you’ve got going on. I’m a cardio-thoracic surgeon,” Mallory replied, her tone clipped.
Ember’s smile faltered for the briefest moment, but it was almost imperceptible. She recovered quickly, her eyes narrowing slightly, but she didn’t back down. “You always did have a way of shutting down anything that made you uncomfortable,” she said, her voice cool and knowing. “I guess some things never change.”
The words hit Mallory harder than she expected. They cut deep, too familiar, like a reminder of everything she’d tried to leave behind. She knew Ember well enough to recognize that glint in her eyes—bold, unafraid, and unapologetic. Ember had always been like that, never afraid to call Mallory out, never afraid to push her buttons.
But Mallory wasn’t going to let her get to her this time. She’d come too far to let Ember undo all the work she’d done to move on. She took a deep breath and forced herself to respond, her voice cold and controlled.
Mallory crossed her arms, her posture tense as she looked at Ember. “So, how’s retirement treating you? Still miss the thrill of running into burning buildings?” Her tone was sharper than she intended, but the bitterness she’d carried for years had bubbled to the surface before she could stop it.
Ember sighed, her expression softening but tinged with weariness. She shifted, brushing an invisible speck of lint from her sleeve. “It’s been many years, Mallory. We were just stupid kids. I thought you’d have let go of all that by now.”
Mallory’s eyes narrowed, her jaw tightening. “Let go? You mean forget? Forget how you threw yourself into danger like it didn’t matter I existed at all?”
Ember’s gaze flicked downward for a moment, and when she looked back up, there was no anger, only quiet resolve. “I didn’t retire because of fear, Mallory. I retired because I wanted something different—for myself, for my life with Josephine, for Natalie.” She hesitated, her voice softening even further as she said her daughter’s name. “And I’ve found it. I’ve built a life I’m proud of with a woman I love.”
She hadn’t expected to feel this strange mix of relief and anger, knowing Ember had finally stepped away from the danger that had defined their relationship. “So now you get it,” Mallory said, her voice low. “Now you understand what it’s like to want someone to stay. To not spend every day wondering if the person you love is going to come home in one piece.”
“I always understood, Mallory,” Ember said quietly, her gaze steady. “I just didn’t know how to balance it back then.”
Mallory’s hands clenched into fists at her sides. “No, you didn’t. And I paid the price for that. You threw yourself into danger every chance you got, and I had to live with the fear and the waiting—and then the arguments when I begged you to stop.”
Ember flinched at the words, but her composure didn’t falter. “You’re right. I didn’t listen when I should have. I was stubborn and too caught up in proving something to myself. I treated you badly. And I’m sorry for that, Mallory. I really am.”
The apology caught Mallory off guard, her heart stuttering in her chest. Ember’s tone wasn’t defensive or dismissive—it was genuine. But it wasn’t enough to soothe the ache of old wounds. “Sorry doesn’t change what happened,” she said, her voice trembling with anger and something else—hurt. “It doesn’t change how it ended.”
“No, it doesn’t,” Ember agreed, her voice soft but resolute. “And I’m not here to change the past. I can’t. But I thought maybe I could… I don’t know, help you move forward. You deserve that, Mallory.”
Mallory laughed again, bitter and sharp. “Help me move forward? Is that what this is? Some kind of redemption arc for you?”
Ember’s eyes darkened, her calm slipping just slightly. “It’s not about me. It’s about you. You’ve always been so strong, Mallory, but you hold onto things so tightly, like you’re afraid to let yourself heal. What happened between us was 15 years ago. Aside from anything else, we wouldn’t have been right together. I don’t want you to forgive me or forget what happened, but I want you to stop letting it hurt you.”
The words hit Mallory like a blow, sharp and unexpected. She wanted to fire back, to tear through Ember’s reasoning, but the sincerity in her voice was impossible to ignore. “You don’t get to decide what I need,” she said, her voice softer now but no less firm. “You lost that right when your behavior to me was constantly shitty.”
Ember exhaled slowly, the tension in her shoulders easing slightly. “I know. And I’m not here to argue with you, Mallory. I just… I want you to be happy. That’s all.”
The words hit Mallory like a punch to the gut, raw and painful, but Mallory didn’t flinch. She couldn’t. Not anymore.
She felt a sharp sting in her chest, a memory of the last fight they’d had—the one that had shattered everything between them all those years ago. “I can’t do this anymore. Not with you. Not with anyone like you.” The memory came crashing back, unbidden and sharp, as if it were happening all over again. She pushed it away, but it lingered, raw and aching in the back of her mind.
But Ember was already walking away, her figure retreating down the hallway as she called over her shoulder, “It was good to see you, Mallory. Really.”
The words were almost kind, but they didn’t ease the weight in Mallory’s chest. She stood there for a long moment after Ember disappeared from sight, her mind racing. The past was never as easy to leave behind as she had hoped. And as much as she wanted to pretend that she had moved on, she knew now that part of her would always be tethered to Ember Thompson, her first love,—whether she liked it or not.
She didn’t want to be with Ember. And if she was thinking rationally, she could see plenty of reasons things hadn’t worked out between them aside from Ember’s risk taking and shitty behaviour. But, we don’t always think rationally, particularly when it comes to first loves.
Mallory watched Ember’s retreating figure as it grew smaller down the hallway, her footsteps echoing against the sterile walls of the hospital. There was something so final about it, like a door closing for good. Yet, Mallory couldn’t shake the feeling that the past had crept back in, unnoticed, settling itself like an unwanted guest. Every inch of her wanted to run after Ember, to somehow finish this conversation better, to untangle the mess of emotions that had stirred up within her. But she didn’t move. She couldn’t.
As Ember turned the corner, Mallory finally exhaled, a long, deep breath that carried the weight of everything she hadn’t said. The intensity in her chest had not faded; if anything, it had only deepened, a gnawing ache in her stomach that refused to be ignored. The same ache she’d carried for years after it ended- the aftermath of their relationship. The feeling that no matter how far she ran, no matter how many new jobs she took or how many new faces she met, she would always be tangled up in memories of her first love.
No other relationships had worked out for her either. Maybe, it wasn’t Ember after all. Ember was happily married now to a real grown up- head of the hospital, no less. Maybe it was Mallory that was the problem in every relationship. Maybe she was the reason her girlfriends never worked out.
Mallory shook her head, forcing herself to focus. She was here for a reason. Phoenix Ridge wasn’t just a change of scenery; it was supposed to be a fresh start. A place to rebuild her life, free from the ghosts of the past. She couldn’t afford to let Ember, or anything related to her, drag her back into old habits.
No more first responders. No more people like Ember.
The mantra echoed in Mallory’s mind as she made her way down the hallway toward her office. She had learned the hard way that people like Ember—reckless, driven by the rush of adrenaline, always on the edge of danger—were not people Mallory could build a life with. Ember had never been afraid to throw herself into harm’s way, to put everything on the line for the sake of a thrill. But Mallory couldn’t live like that. She couldn’t keep pretending it was okay, watching from the sidelines as Ember risked it all, all while telling Mallory it was “just a part of the job.”
I’m here to do my job, Mallory reminded herself again. Nothing else. No distractions. No more looking back.
But as she stepped into her office and closed the door behind her, the silence was deafening. For a moment, Mallory allowed herself to breathe, to take stock of where she was.
Her phone buzzed on the desk, startling her out of her thoughts. She glanced down at it, half-expecting a message from Dr. Mars or perhaps a colleague following up on some administrative detail. But the name on the screen made her pause, a small, surprised smile tugging at the corners of her lips.
Kara.
For a moment, Mallory hesitated, her thumb hovering over the phone. She didn’t know why she had been expecting it. They had only just met, shared a brief but electrifying connection, but that had felt like a lifetime ago, a world away from the stress of her first day in this new hospital. Still, the sight of Kara’s name on her phone felt like a small, unexpected thread of light in the haze of her thoughts.
Kara: How’s the first day? Don’t let the hospital drama suck you in too quickly.
Mallory couldn’t help but smile at the lighthearted tone in Kara’s message. It was like a breath of fresh air, the kind of playful distraction that Mallory had needed after her tense encounter with Ember. Kara’s words were easy, inviting, unburdened by the heavy weight of her past, and Mallory found herself grateful for that. For a moment, she let herself imagine a world where things didn’t have to be so complicated, where the past didn’t hang over everything she did.
Mallory: First day’s going well so far. But I’ve already encountered some interesting personalities. Could use a break from all the drama, honestly.
Mallory hit send before she could second-guess herself. She didn’t know what she was hoping for, maybe just the distraction of a light conversation, something to pull her out of the shadows of her own mind.
The minutes passed in silence as Mallory stared at her phone, her mind a whirlwind of conflicting emotions.
She was tired of it.
The phone buzzed again, pulling Mallory from her thoughts.
Kara: Sounds like you’ve got your hands full. Let me know if you need an escape plan. I know a good place for a drink when you’re off.
Mallory’s chest tightened, the simplest invitation pulling her back to the present. She hadn’t expected Kara’s message to be anything more than a casual check-in, but something about the offer felt different—genuine. Something about the way Kara phrased it, so easy, so unencumbered by the weight of what came before, made Mallory feel like maybe, just maybe, this was something worth exploring.
But Mallory wasn’t sure she was ready to let herself go there—not yet. She had only just stepped into this new chapter of her life. And as much as the idea of spending time with Kara seemed appealing, she wasn’t sure she could open that door without letting all the failed relationships of her past come flooding in behind her.
She was 36 years old now. Surely it was time she got it together.
Instead, Mallory set the phone down, leaning back in her chair with a sigh. Her eyes wandered to the window across the room, where the soft rays of the afternoon sun filtered through the blinds. Phoenix Ridge was a far cry from the bustling, chaotic city she had left behind. It was quiet here. Peaceful. But that also meant there was nowhere to hide from her thoughts. No distractions.
The pull of the past tugged at her again, an insistent whisper, a reminder that no matter how hard she tried to move forward, the ghosts of the past would always be there, waiting for the moment when she least expected it.
Still, a part of Mallory couldn’t help but feel drawn toward something new, something uncharted. The connection with Kara, no matter how brief, had felt different from anything she had experienced in a long time. It wasn’t messy. It wasn’t complicated. It was just… easy.
She glanced down at her phone again, her fingers itching to send a reply, to accept the invitation, to take a step into something unknown.