Nora knew she wasn't a favorite with the staff. She didn't possess the people skills many of her colleagues displayed. Her insistence on attention to detail and her intolerance of mediocre work had earned her the reputation of being difficult.

It wasn't that she didn't care what her coworkers thought of her—she did. It hurt to see how quickly their expressions changed from cheerful to guarded, but making sure her patients received the highest quality care was far more important than being popular.

Arching one eyebrow, the slender nurse with short blond hair asked, "Do you mean Cara Dempsey?"

Nora raised her chin. Her skill was saving children with heart defects, not winning popularity contests. Professionalism was the key to getting things done right in the hospital, not sociability.

"I'm looking for the patient who came in from Blackwater General yesterday with transposition of the great arteries. Do you have the chart?" The words came out sounding sharper than she intended.

The ward nurse held out a black three-ring binder. "The patient is in room five. Dr. Kent just finished talking to the parents."

"Thank you." Nora nodded, relieved to hear that her partner had arrived first. Peter Kent would have explained the coming procedure to the family. It saved Nora the time and headache of trying to make laypeople understand the complex nature of the upcoming operation.

If she found any fault