“Eh,” he shrugged and let them be.
Instead of focusing on both a style and medium he wasn’t all that interested in, he chose to hone in on the coffee place. The smell was absolutely intoxicating as he drew close, eyes sweeping the menu. Once he’d ordered, he scanned the quiet atrium and finally settled on a seat near the window.
Choosing a table for himself, he flopped back in the chair. With a satisfied groan, he propped his feet up on the table and faced the window. The view was as impressive up close as it had been from the doorway. Theo had no idea what the real estate costs for a hospital this size on the water was, but he imagined someone had shelled out a pretty penny for it.
As the sky began to burn, a familiar voice piped up from behind him. “Mr. Atkins?”
Theo turned his attention away from the sunrise, squinting at the man behind him. His lips curled as he recognized the doctor from the clinic. Dr. Andrews, his name tag read. The dark-haired man stood with a coffee of his own in hand, his head tilted in question, reminding Theo endearingly of a curious dog.
“Well, hello, Doc,” Theo all but purred.
The older man blinked, curiosity slipping behind a professional smile, and Theo preferred the more open expression than the one from before. The Doc was a good looking man, even with a formal smile on his face. Theo guessed he was about half a foot taller than Theo and was built strong. If Theo had spotted the man on the streets, he would have guessed Dr. Andrews was a construction worker. The man had strong features, a square jaw, and large but gentle hands as Theo himself had experienced. There was the ghost of dark stubble on the doctor’s face, matching the pitch black of his hair. Well, the parts that weren’t sprinkled with streaks of gray and white that was.
Theo couldn’t help but smirk, the doc looked even better when Theo’s tongue wasn’t stuck to someone else’s dick.
“I would have thought you’d have gone home by now,” Dr. Andrews said, looking down at the table.
Theo shrugged. “I can go home anytime. But that doesn’t mean I always wanna.”
“So, you decided to camp out in the hospital cafeteria instead.”
Theo motioned to the window. “Look at that view. I get to enjoy this, a decent cup of coffee, and all without worrying about a seagull taking a shit on my shoulder while I watch.”
That earned a soft chuckle from the doctor. Theo looked up, watching as the man’s dark blue eyes flicked between the window and the seat across the table from Theo. Cocking his head, he took note of the quirk of the doctor’s dark brow and the eyes his mother would have called “Irish eyes”, though Theo had no idea why. Far as he knew, red hair and green eyes were supposed to be an Irish thing.
Theo motioned to the other seat. “Take a load off, Doc, doesn’t do you any good standing there.”
The man did as he was told, wincing as he sat down. “Thank you. Only realized a little while ago that I’ve been on my feet for longer than usual. It helps to take a break every now and then.”
“All work and no play makes the Doc a dull boy,” Theo chided him.
That earned a wry smile. “Call me Grant.”
“Only if you stick to calling me Theo. Theodore is for my mother, and Mr. Atkins is my father,” Theo said.
Grant cocked his head. “And there again, I know your name sounds familiar.”
Theo scoffed, taking a sip of his coffee. “I’m too familiar with it.”
If anything, he was just glad the man hadn’t immediately recognized his surname. Few things found their way under Theo’s skin, and one of them was having someone immediately associate him with his family. The Atkins’ had a long and storied history when it came to Port Dale. Which they damn well should since they helped found the city generations ago.
Now his family was the closest Port Dale had to royalty, or at least they liked to think of themselves as such. What had once been a family of hardworking builders and miners had somehow morphed into little more than socialites with delusions of grandeur. Sure, they had money and pedigree, but that was about it. More money than sense in many ways, Theo thought.
“I’m sensing a theme,” Grant said, watching him.
Theo chuckled. “Are you? Well, I guess you’re an observant one, I’ll have to watch out for that.”
Again Grant’s brow raised. “Evasive, Mr. Atkins?”
Theo scowled at him. “We just had this conversation.”
“Did we? Sorry about that, but at my age, you have to give something up mentally. Apparently, I kept my keen eye, but not my memory.”
Theo blinked, letting out a soft laugh. “Alright, well done.”
Apparently not quite as innocent as he looked, Theo noted. Then again, that wasn’t something he was going to complain about. He did love a man who was willing to wield their wit every now and again.
Grant’s smile held as he looked out the windows. “This is my favorite time to be down here. It’s a pity I don’t always get the opportunity.”
Theo looked up. “I bet between this and the...art up there, this place cost almost as much as a whole wing of the hospital.”
“I wouldn’t know, never was one for crunching numbers.”
“Says the man who probably had to take a lot of math courses to get that snazzy white coat.”
“There’s a huge difference between knowing measurements and dosages, and sitting behind a machine, dealing with budgets.”
“Is there?”
Grant snorted. “Yes, the former gives me a sense of fulfillment and pleasure. The latter would tempt me to wade out into the ocean there and keep going until the bubbles stopped.”
“Well, you’ve got me there,” Theo laughed. “Never was one for math. Too many numbers, too much logic.”
“As a man who has to rely on said logic to get through his job, I’m not sure I like the tone of disgust.”
Theo winked at him. “Don’t worry, Doc, I won’t sneer too hard. Who else would have freed me from the idiot?”
“Idiot?” Grant questioned, then blinked in understanding. “Ah, yes, Mr. Matthers.”
“I’m not normally one for last names,” Theo told him.
“Ah, not your partner then.”
“Oh God, please, don’t. I feel bad for whatever poor bastard has to put up with him.”
“He seemed like a perfectly nice young man.”
It was Theo’s turn to raise a brow. “Nice young man? Geez, I know you made a crack at your age, but you can’t be that old.”
“Forty-five in November,” Grant told him.
Theo grunted. “If it wasn’t for the salt and pepper, I would have pegged you for almost ten years younger than that.”
Grant gave him a warm smile, and Theo felt heat pool in his gut. The doc had one of those faces that could look surly and mean when he didn’t carry an expression on it. More than likely, that was the reason he kept at least a professional smile on his face when dealing with people. The genuine pleasure on Grant’s face, his smile managing to reach his eyes, made him look positively handsome.
“Well, thank you, Theo. It’s not something I think about all that often, but that doesn’t mean it’s not nice to hear.”
“You’re telling me no one has ever looked you dead in the eye and called you ‘Daddy’ before?” Theo asked doubtfully.