Page 37 of Hot Times in Heart Falls, Vignettes Vol 3

Since day one, Edison had made it clear he wasn’t looking for permanence. His past was full of complications, he’d said, so he chose to live in the present—joyfully, deliberately, beautifully.

Kevin understood that. Hell, his job meant he was trained to respect that with every inch of his soul.

But tonight, with Edison beside him and the holiday season closing in on them, Kevin wanted more than good intentions and warm blankets. He wanted to give Edison something that mattered.

Something that didn’t say I love you and throw the other man into a panic, but said I see you. I get you. I’m here.

I’d like to always be here.

Kevin wasn’t sure what that gift looked like yet, but he’d figure it out. Soon, because Edison was the best thing that had happened to him in a long, long time.

And Kevin? He was more than willing to fight, quietly and carefully, for someone worth holding on to.

2

Edison walked into the Heart Falls Medical Clinic, flipped the lights on, and gave the coffee pot a suspicious glare.

The contraption was set on a timer by the front-desk staff, supposedly to be ready when the clinic opened. Jenny tended to set the clock for far too early, so the finished coffee sat on the hot plate getting evil and nasty.

Secretly, Edison was grateful that the power occasionally went out on the Main Street block and messed with the electronics.

“Insult to caffeine,” he muttered. He sniffed at the full pot, considered the affront to his taste buds, then made an executive decision.

He happily set about remaking the batch. The admin staff wouldn’t arrive for another twenty minutes, and the doctor on call—Lexie today—habitually arrived one minute before the doors opened.

Once the new coffee was brewing, he did a walk-through. Unlocked the medical safe. Checked each of the two examination rooms to make sure they were stocked, tidy, and ready for the day. Edison liked having the building to himself for a little while, and the opening actions he followed were routine and familiar, the scent of antiseptic the perfect perfume.

He’d opened the clinic many times before, but this morning felt different. As if something quietly electric hummed under his skin. Maybe it was the way Kevin’s hand had lingered in his even as the fire burned low last night. Maybe it was the kisses they’d shared—sweet, deliberate, yet charged like a promise he didn’t quite know how to read.

Maybe it was the way Kevin had looked at him.

Lordy, his brain was going to explode if he didn’t find a way to settle his racing thoughts.

When Lexie breezed in with her usual energetic hello, Edison poured her a cup of non-offensive coffee and forced himself into his groove.

Appointments were steady. Minor complaints and follow-ups, a flu shot or three, and one toddler who proudly told Edison he was going to be a race car when he grew up. Not drive one—be one.

Edison saluted him and said that he too hoped to be that fast one day.

By ten-thirty, he was in the break room on his scheduled pause, checking out the tabs he’d left open the night before with Christmas gift ideas. None of them felt quite right. The leather wallet he’d found was gorgeous, but Kevin had a serviceable wallet, worn, yet still in good shape. The ceramic mugs made Edison smile, and he could picture Kevin using them, but the man seemed happy with the set he already owned.

A ping interrupted his thoughts. Incoming video call. He glanced at the screen.

Mom & Dad.

He connected then propped his phone on a small box of exam gloves, adjusting the camera so his face was front and center. Lordy, his curls were far too dramatic today.

“Hi, baby!” His mom’s face appeared, cheerful as always, framed by a fuzzy sweater collar and her trademark hoop earrings. “You look cozy.”

“I’m at work,” Edison said, laughing.

“And yet, cozy,” his dad called from the background. “That scrub jacket is doing overtime. Are those rabbits and rainbows? Sweet.”

Edison glanced down then back up at his father in astonishment. “How is it possible that you spotted those details in under two seconds?”

“I can feel it through the screen. It’s got soul.”

Edison rolled his eyes affectionately. “You’re a menace. Where are you guys—at home or babysitting my niblings?”