The Bouncer

But We're Bros! #20

by Heath Grayson

"If you both like what you've got going on, you’re just a few drinks away from making a huge mistake." - Kane

I recently moved to the big city to start a new life. I love it, except for how hard it is to make friends here. Most guys I’ve met on the apps don’t want to hang out a second time. Thankfully I've made connections with my coworkers. Namely, a bouncer at the bar where I work named Kane.

A few years older than me, Kane is a tough-as-nails and straight-as-an-arrow ex-marine. He can be grumpy but doesn’t let that get in the way of having fun. I enjoy working with him, but there’s only one problem–I am so attracted to the man that it physically hurts. He's exactly my type. Big and hairy in all the right proportions with ice-blue eyes, and a smile that can melt steel. He’s not shy in the staff changing room, either. And from the looks of it–he has no reason to be.

The more I try to hang out with new people, the more I find myself spending time with my coworkers. But the more time I spend with Kane, the more time I want to spend with him, in a not-exactly professional manner.

I don’t know if he knows how hopelessly into him I am, but the way he’s been clinging to me all night has me thinking he does. Now I just need to keep my wits about me at the afterparty, or I might let my feelings slip and turn work into an awkward nightmare.


The first full-length novel from author Heath Grayson sees new bartender Blake fall for the gruff and grumpy bouncer Kane. A slow burn, humorous romance with a few bumps and a HEA.

Genres: M M Romance, Romance, Slow Burn, Contemporary, LGBT

314 pages, Kindle Edition

Published July 14, 2023

About the author

Heath Grayson writes erotic fiction featuring men who've just found out there may be more to life than they ever imagined. His debut series, But We're Bros!, depicts guy friends crossing lines that bros typically don't. Heath is fascinated by the quiet moments between men, how a single stare, repeated joke, or the simple brush of a hand can turn into something much more. The first time with your good bro can change your world.

Reviews

[Shelba · Rating 3 out of 5]

Liked this more than I thought I would, and it was coasting at 4 stars for a while, but the last chapter and epilogue brought it down to a 3 for me.

First, the pining is great. I wanted more angst (but then I always want more angst.

I am not a fan of “pussy” and “bussy”. “Lady folds” is something I hope to never read ever again. And “lump” is not sexy, if you have a lump between you legs, maybe have your doctor check it out.

I also wasn’t a fan of all the penis and semen euphemism. It’s erotic romance… call it a cock, a dick.. not a little head, big stick, or tube of manhood. Tube of manhood sounds like a translation error for men’s deodorant.

There’s a lot of (internalized) biphobia coming from Kane. As well as a bit of bi-erasure. Saying you loved that you ex was so open about being bi, but then referring to her as a lesbian and saying you are happy the person she chose to be with after leaving you was a woman so you didn’t have to feel like you were man enough.

Kane has soooooooooo much he needs to deal with, not just with being comfortable with his bisexuality, and his relationship with a guy, but his emotional constipation and using humour to deflect from serious conversation. Honestly, I’m surprise Blake didn’t drown him in the soup after the amount of jokes Kane made while Blake was baring his soul.

So, yeah…. I wasn’t crazy over how the last chapter went. I didn’t thing it had a great resolution. And epilogues, which I hate in general, should not be used to wrap up every issue in the book. Issues should be fixed. It should just be the cherry on top, not the decorating of the cake to cover up your mangled cake. Honestly, this is on the longer side for a (erotic) romance book, so I would have thought all that extra page count would have given plenty of time to wrap things up outside of the epilogue.

As for editing, there were a few typos… but not too many. There was also a few cases of the wrong word being used, like “interrupt” instead of “interpret” and “comparable” vs “compatible.

Definitely an author I’d be willing to try again, though.

[Robert Fontenot · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’m not gonna lie, the beginning of this novel is rough. This is Grayson‘s first full length book and it shows, particularly in the first couple of chapters. Somewhere along the line, though, it becomes really great. The writing evens out and Grayson does what he does best, creating characters that are both vulnerable and deep. In this book, he handles the self-destructive nature of pining after a straight friend, or having to keep your relationship secret from those you care about, with a truth and nuance that is rare for the genre. The sex is hot and a little dirty, but it also causes confusion and feelings of both joy and shame. And someways there’s a truthfulness to the confusing nature of the relationships in this book that I rarely see in gay romance novels, and I love that Grayson doesn’t stoop to overtly melodramatic plot twists.

This feels like a gay romance written for a gay audience and that is a rare thing.

[SJ]

Tried this one a while back and could not get into the relationship. I remember thinking that the wives couple were too involved in Kane’s business.

[Brianna · Rating 3 out of 5]

I know this is based on real life experiences (I obviously can’t experience it, you know as a cis bisexual woman in an 11 year and counting het relationship), but MAN Kane was INFURIATING. I can’t handle it. Also all the “man”s was making my eye twitch (however I am not a dude so maybe I just don’t know a standard dude’s vocabulary(vocab? lexicon? verbiage? vernacular? I dunno which is the correct word here)? But I like to think that being in a relationship with the same man for 11 years gives me a little bit of experience). I don’t know a single dude in real like that says the word ‘man’ as many times as these dudes do. Also, the smut scenes were porny… like way porny… like WAY WAY porny. Grimace worthy. I wanted to like this, and in a broad way I did, I really enjoyed reading something that was realistic and authentic and written in such a way that demonstrated how hard a situation like this is (I had the song ‘Why Did You Invite Me To Your Wedding’ by Kevin Atwater in my head the whole time, that song makes me legit bawl my eyes out), but the writing as a whole didn’t work for me…

ALSO I kinda wish this was one of those stories that didn’t end with the main character kinda settling for the other character. I’ll say it: Kane didn’t deserve Blake! Blake was sweet and so selfless and funny and I loved him and Kane was NOT the correct choice. I wanted him to break things off with Kane and build himself back up and find a different dude who wasn’t infuriatingly dense and was perfect for Blake (deemed so by me) and to adopt a baby and adopt a cat named Lasagna with him.

Anyway, it’s midnight right now, which is late for me, so maybe this review doesn’t make much sense. Also I am diagnosed combo adhd so you know. Take that as you will regarding how this review is written.

[Tim · Rating 3 out of 5]

Blake is a bartender and Kane is the bouncer at the New York City bar they both work at. Blake's 26, Kane's 33. Blake has a huge crush on the huge man, but Kane is straight (with kids.) The two of them spend time together as friends as one thing leads to another and the two are fucking.

I kept thinking that this feels a little bit like author's short novella The Farm (part 1) in some ways. A full length novel, but it's all told from Blake's POV. However the way Blake is out and proud and the ways that Kane treats him... I didn't much like that. The beginning chapters were pretty rocky, and the sex scenes kind of blurred together, with the cheesy dialogue and repeated references to rearranging guts.

It feels like this was rushed, and the editing reflects that. In the first date chapter, I saw it referenced as Bulgogi beef, bulgogi, and Bulgogi. Several times the sentenced spelled out a number but then would throw in the arabic numerals, like "the four of us went out for a walk, but 20 minutes later we returned." Multiple times I noticed a sentence missing a word, like there was a sentence that went something like "His chest was fine but needed a trim." It took me good 5 rereads of the paragraph to figure out the sentenced was referring to Kane's chest hair. Consistency in editing would help.

Some good moments, some bland moments... I rate this in the middle, 3.5 stars. Rounding to 3.

[Helen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good but not great.

This was my first time reading this author and I can honestly say I enjoyed it, it wasn’t perfect, neither of the main characters were perfect, they both really annoyed me on more than one occasion, but overall I was throughly invested once I started reading.

I really felt for Blake at the beginning, the unrequited feelings he had for Kane were really heartbreaking to read, and I felt like Kane didn’t treat him the best at times. I could understand where Kane was coming from at times, he grew up in a very conservative family and had a lot of internalised homophobia, or biphobia in this case to deal with, but once Kane was in he was all in, there relationship at the end was amazing, it just took quite a while to get there.

I didn’t like a lot of the language used in this book, the way they referred to genitalia and the dirty talk (which I usually love) in this book just wasn’t my bag, but different strokes and all that.

Overall an enjoyable book, but will never be one of my favourites.

[Sara · Rating 5 out of 5]

Blake and Kane have my heart! 🩷

First time reader of this author and I really enjoyed his debut novel. The book was written in Blake’s POV and while I usually prefer a dual POV, it really worked for this book. I liked finding out Kane’s feelings and what he was thinking when Blake did. It was a raw, honest take on how growing up in a conservative household shapes your prejudices in the future and I loved reading Kane work through those wounds as he came to accept his sexuality.

The book was well written with some minor editing issues that for the most part didn’t take me out of the story. It’s longer than I’m used to, but the extra details and side characters really brought the story together and I found I really enjoyed reading a more in-depth view of their lives and families. It’s a really feel good, slow burn, low angst book with a beautiful HEA. 5 ⭐️

[diana moreno · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not as expected

This book started out okay and by 40% of it nothing really was happening and is one of the first books if not the first book I have ever read where I felt no angst at all. At one point it felt it was more about Blake and Nate. Kane wasn't really part of the story until 60% maybe. I just got no angst at all so when they finally did get moving I had lost interest in their love story altogether. Also, Kane at the beginning is full of red flags, Blake is way too permissive when it to kane's behavior. They're both good guys it's more of a lot of missed opportunities along the way in the way that it was written and none of the scenes were steamy for me because how the romance itself was laid out. It was very mechanical, oh let me do this for you as a favor or there was not much sexiness going on in general.

[Xedotic · Rating 1 out of 5]

1.5. The prose is seriously not very good. There are a lot of places where the cadence of the sentences just doesn’t flow. I think this book was written to have some comedic telling during the sex scenes. But I can confidently say neither “penis” nor “tube of his manhood” are particularly the most sexy words for a dick.

Also Kane is fucking dense as fuck. Every interaction with him where he is just “yeah bro, totally” and not taking anything seriously is annoying. And I agree with the MMC and every sexual encounter just makes me feel like Kane is using him. I mean, clearly the author knows Kane’s flaws b/c the MMC is mentioning them. But seriously. It honestly makes Kane look like a jackass.

[Aethena Drake · Rating 4 out of 5]

This story felt a little bit like an episode of Queer as Folk. The story had a personal feel, and the characters were all interesting people.

The plot revolves around the relationships of the characters, and I liked getting to know Kane and Blake through the evolution of their relationships.

Some parts of the story felt a little superfluous to me, but I wasn't terribly interested in the details of bartending or being a chef. I am already way to familiar with those professions.

Overall an engaging read that I would recommend for anyone looking for a story with romance in the big city and a character who is questioning their sexuality.

[Erika · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was ok

This is my first book from this author and it was interesting. The plot is was pretty good and included late bi awakening, internalized homophobia, and found family. There were quite a few misspelled words and even words that were used completely wrong in the story but nothing that was a total killer. The one thing that really took me out of the story was some of the just weird dirty talk. I felt like I got second hand embarrassment from some of it, like there is no way I would be able to be a straight face if I heard it in real life. Also... please never write the words meat tube in reference to a d*ick ever.... just. No.

[mike bullock · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oh, yes, Daddy!!!😋😎😁😍😍😍

Wonderfully engaging! I saw this book and held back from reading it for a while. I'm glad I did and mad at myself for denying myself such a treasure! It captures you from the beginning and unfolds into the most beautiful story! I could not put it down. The story is rich and full of life, love and all that icky stuff that makes you nervous and aroused!!!😋😁 The characters so fully f!saved out you sink right into their world! Spicy hot and steamy!!😘 Highly recommend putting this on your reading list.😏

[laura cabezas · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 stars 🤍 hmm i wanted to like this more and im so sad i couldn’t. i have loved a lot of this authors work (and will continue to read it!) but this one didn’t hit as well with me, i felt so bad for blake man 😭😭 he was being walked over by kane and i got so frustrated with him letting it happen and not just telling kane to take a hike! had to put down my kindle a few times in frustration lol, it was a cute ending but i just get so stuck with how their relationship came about. regardless, i will read more from this author as this seems like a rare case of me not liking their work as much :)

[Patricia Lynn Graves · Rating 2 out of 5]

Very slow moving!!

The main character Kane is very whiny throughout the whole book, he goes back and forth won't decide if he is straight gay bi or if he even wants a relationship at all! Which brings me to the second main character Blake who lets himself be manipulated and strung along throughout the whole book he is given false hope from Kane pretty much until the end of the book I had a hard time getting through it! I really disliked both characters because one was so whiny and the other would let himself be used throughout!

[rinia carla · Rating 2 out of 5]

one star is for blake, the other star is for their first sex scene

kane needs to grow up, it took him touching blake’s dick to tell him he loved him….yeah he’s 12 just like blake said..he’s too old to be acting like a little boy. he’s divorced and has two kids like who gives a flying fuck about your brother you don’t even like him why would anything he said in the past matter????

blake is better than me because i wouldn’t left after I got what I wanted. he literally doesn’t respect you at this point.

[Linda Bohannon · Rating 2 out of 5]

After the two books I finished before this that were full of angst, and intensity that was off the charts. Real stories that wasn't just about the sex. The bouncer guy is ridiculous like he doesn't have a clue. Repetitive writing of feelings like a stuck record. This author tried, but no cigar. Could've been a lot better. Or maybe after the last two books, no one could've measured up. I chose this book because I thought I needed something lighter. But I couldn't even get into it.

[John A. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Not at all what I was expecting.

From the title of the series, to the title of the book and the image — guess the old adage is true: do not judge a book by its cover.

This story was epic. I’m so glad I gave it a chance and was introduced to this author and his storytelling. It was impressive.

The scenes. The characters. The story. The love. Yeah — this was darn good stuff. Great even. Highly, HIGHLY recommend.

[Ann ☕️ · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5. Kane and Blake. First book by this author and wished it was better or maybe just not my writing style. Two pet peeves in this book: 1) glaring occasional typos (manors instead of manners… What?) and 2) overuse of calling each other “man”. Ugh.

I did think the author did a good job with Blake’s feelings and how frustrated he got with Kane’s emotional infancy on his bi awakening. Kane however was so emotionally stunted I wondered why they were even together.

[Alicia Meyer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Kane and Blake

A different read then most but worth it in the end for me. The bi-awakening was painful at times to read through but it was a nice change from the usual. This is only in the pov of Blake which was fine and while it would have been nice to read Kanes side I didn’t feel like I was missing to much. It isn’t a quick read but good.

[Merulus Valayil · Rating 5 out of 5]

So good!

So hot and angsty and achingly sweet. So many moments of angst I thought this is it, but there was so much left of the book it couldn't be. It was raw and real but also just about extra, in the sense that they were so emotionally mature and their coming together was not smooth but real and then the end was so sweet.

[Zuum · Rating 5 out of 5]

Banter and Character Dev on point

This book has some of the best on page conversations anywhere. Inside jokes that the reader gets to be a part of are usually an indication of good writing for me. I also love that the characters are compelling without being these crazy wealthy super accomplished unrealistic people. They’re just guys who have are imperfect and hilarious and have dreams and people they care about. Awesome story.

[R Anthony · Rating 5 out of 5]

Grayson writes men who act like men. He skips the long internal debates and gets straight to the friction. The focus here is on the physical reality of the encounter—the weight of a body, the heat of skin, and the aggression of the act. The pacing is fast and the dynamic feels authentic. If you want a story driven by instinct rather than romance, this is it.

[Dave · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful book, Heath. Blake is the consummate bartender, and Kane, the bouncer, is really a talented chef, and they click immediately but Kane thinks he's actually straight. The book is about how he realizes he's not strictly because he is every bit as in love with Blake as Blake is with him.

[Christina P · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sweet

I enjoyed this book. I so wanted Blake and Kane to get their happy ending. I love the found family ideal. I wish Kane would have been more receptive to reciprocating but baby steps right. I would read more of Heath Grayson’s anytime

[⚓Dan⚓ · Rating 5 out of 5]

Congrats to Heath on his first novel. A must read! Thoroughly enjoyed it!

[Sharon · Rating 4 out of 5]

cute romance about a bartender and his bouncer who he believes to be straight.

[Vanessa · Rating 5 out of 5]

intriguing series

This is the first story I have read by this author. I really enjoyed getting to know each one of the characters and reading about the unique family dynamic.

[Obsessed · Rating 5 out of 5]

Kane, bouncer and Blake, bartender

Notes: sexual awakening, mention of homophobic family, personal growth, good communication

[Debi · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.3

[NTDan · Rating 4 out of 5]

this was surprisingly enjoyable considering the previous books
there are definitely issues with it, but its still great
i enjoyed blake and kane and the story that unfolded between them