Coffee Boy (Austin Chant)
3.75 stars rounded up
I must say that at first, Kieran was way too prickly for me. It took a little time to get myself comfortable with his attitude, especially when he confronts Seth. I imagine I will probably take a step back if I ever encounter someone like Kieran in real life. Which was why the relationship progress from supervisor/intern to colleagues to something more between Seth and Kieran felt believable because they were not on good terms in the beginning.
Kieran is grumpy, Seth is uptight. Kieran thinks Seth is hot (and Kieran laments over the fact that he likes Seth) while Seth is painfully hiding his crush over their boss. Plus there is that 12 years-old age-gap between them. But they work things through and I loved how Seth is trying to make the work-space a safe space for Kieran.
The trans part is wonderfully written. Yes, it is a significant element to the romance. Considering that the novella is written solely from Kieran's perspective, I felt like I got more information about how trans feels and the challenge they are facing. At the same time, never for once I felt like I was being preached by the author. It never became overwhelming. It was just facts of this story.
The ending was the reason of my placing Coffee Boy to my 4* category. It was sweet and put a smile to my face :). This is one occasion when my impulsive purchase is a GREAT purchase ^^