Caffeine, Clenched Jaws & Closure: A Romantic Comedy

By Dalton Douglas

He said it out loud in the coffee line.

"You're clenching."

Tanner Teller-Dalton's buttoned-up banker with a spotless tie and a jaw made of pure denial-does not want a dental diagnosis from a stranger at 7:42 a.m. He wants coffee, silence, and a day where nobody in this town looks at him like he's personally responsible for their feelings.

Dr. Griffin Wheeler has other plans.

Griffin is Dalton's calm, wry dentist with a dangerous talent for reading stress like a second language. When he clocks Tanner's TMJ in real time, he offers a simple fix: a night guard, a few stretches, and one inconvenient truth-Tanner isn't "fine." He's functional.

What starts as reluctant appointments and banter-filled follow-ups turns into recurring proximity: coffee "thank yous" that become a habit, small-town gossip that becomes a problem, and a banker who's terrified of being seen needing anything... falling for the one man who refuses to let him hide behind competence.

But when a high-stakes "closure" decision at the bank ignites town pressure and corporate scrutiny, Tanner does what he's always done-withdraw. And Griffin, who equates distance with rejection, does the only thing he knows: he backs off.

Until they stop clenching long enough to talk like adults.

Because healing isn't a finish line.
It's a series of small choices...
and one brave conversation at a time.

Caffeine, Clenched Jaws & Closure is a warm, funny M/M small-town romantic comedy packed with sharp banter, found-family chaos, a meddling town chorus, and a happily ever after that tastes like coffee and relief.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: B0GSMXCW15
• ISBN13: 9798252124506
• Release Date: March 2026
• Publisher: Independently Published
• Length: 332 Pages
• Weight: 0.89 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 6.0" x 9.0"