Derrek is a local teacher in Clearwater, Florida. He frequents a nearby coffee shop before work every morning, where he finds himself enraptured with a young barista, Alex. But Alex never seems to notice him, even when he’s handing Derrek his morning coffee.
After weeks of hiding in his corner under the pretense of working, Derrek finally gains enough courage to ask Alex on a date. He’s crushed when all he gets for an answer is complete silence. He thinks it’s the end, until he finds out that Alex has a disability that has paralyzed his vocal cords.
Sign language is Alex’s way of communication, and it’s something that Derrek knows little to nothing about. With renewed determination, Derrek asks Alex to teach him sign language. Derrek wants to be able to talk to Alex, to tell him how he really feels, and find out if Alex feels the same.
But more than anything, he longs for a relationship that goes deeper than just words alone.
Louder Than Words is an 18,000-word novella.
Amazon
Kobo Books
Hmmm, okay…
So, first… I understand that this is a novella, so, of course, it’s going to be short…. but it ends so abruptly, like literally, in the most random place, I thought for sure there would be another page or two or something, but nope… it just ended. This is my first story by this author, so I’m not sure if that’s the norm, but it took me a bit by surprise in this one.
Other than that, though… it was a cute story. Alex is a barista at the coffee shop that Derrek frequents everyday… sure for coffee but also because he’s smitten with the cute barista with a tongue ring and dark hair. Although he kind of botches his attempt in asking him out… Derrek’s obnoxious (and he seriously, ridiculously obnoxious), co-worker helps him out in asking him out again… That’s when he realizes that Alex doesn’t speak.
Alex, is adorable… tattoo’s, piercings, adorable smile… got me swooning over here! Derrek is a little cheesy but he’s sweet in a “clueless” kind of way. I didn’t take either of them for being particularly experienced but once they got comfortable with each other, they settled into a pretty cute relationship.
When asked to help a new fellow co-worker to learn sign… Alex and Derrek agree, since Alex had also taught Derrek and was a good teacher. However, it didn’t go quite as planned and the kid seemed like kind of a jerk. He’s with the abrupt ending though so don’t get used to him…. I wonder if they’ll be another book or another story involving any of them… I wouldn’t mind reading more about them… like I said… Alex was adorable and well worth the read of this short story…
3.5 pieces of eye candy
