The Sound of Silence, page 1
THE SOUND OF SILENCE
DAKOTA WILLINK
DRAGONFLY INK PUBLISHING
CONTENTS
Books by Dakota Willink
Praise for The Sound of Silence
Trigger Warning
Part I
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Part II
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Part III
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Part IV
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Part V
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Chapter 33
Chapter 34
Chapter 35
Chapter 36
Chapter 37
Part VI
Chapter 38
Chapter 39
Chapter 40
Chapter 41
Chapter 42
Chapter 43
Chapter 44
A Note From The Author
Follow
Playlist
Sneak Peek
About Dakota Willink
BOOKS BY DAKOTA WILLINK
The Stone Series
(Billionaire Romantic Suspense)
Heart of Stone
Stepping Stone
Set In Stone
Wishing Stone
Breaking Stone
The Fade Into You Series
Untouched (New Adult Romance)
Defined (Second Chance Romance)
Endurance (Sports Romance)
Take Me Trilogy
(Billionaire Romantic Suspense)
Take Me Under
Take Me Darkly
Take Me Forever
Standalone Titles
The Sound of Silence
(Dark Romantic Thriller)
Please visit www.dakotawillink.com for more information.
Copyright © 2020 by Dakota Willink
All Rights Reserved.
In ordinance with the United States Copyright Act of 1976, no part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form without permission of the publisher . Please do not participate in or encourage unlawful piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the author’s intellectual property.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
ISBN: 978-1-954817-19-7
The Sound of Silence | Copyright © 2020 by Dakota Willink
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.
Cover art by Dragonfly Ink Publishing Copyright © 2020
Praise for The Sound of Silence
“Raw. Inspired. Invigorated. Empowered. This book will leave you reeling with emotion as Willink’s heroine scrapes herself off and embarks on a tumultuous journey to finding herself once again. It is a story of strength despite fear, of resilience despite the chance of failure, of freedom and rediscovering oneself.”
— Carey Decevito, Author
“A 5 star page turner that is so much more than just an edge of your seat romantic suspense. It’s an emotional roller coaster that perfectly mirrors the silent struggles of too many women. Beyond pure entertainment, it is a plea to open our eyes, to realities that are often right in front of us.”
— Cassidy London, Author
“I was completely robbed of breath, gulping in desperation and taken by fits of adrenaline. This is an in-your-face, heart-pounding story that is so vivid, you feel as if you’re living it.”
— Not Your Moms Romance Book Blog
“I was blown away by this inescapable page turner! The powerful emotions that spiral throughout will have a lasting effect on me for years to come!”
— 2 Vixens Book Blog
“Dakota Willink's latest dark romantic thriller is a chilling and heart-stopping romance that's guaranteed to keep you on the edge of your seat!”
— After Fifty Shades Book Blog
TRIGGER WARNING
This story contains situations of domestic violence and abuse. Some aspects may be sensitive for some readers.
Me too.
PART I
GIRL MEETS BOY
1
Gianna
Cincinnati, Ohio
I slid my palms over my black apron, smearing the sticky remnants of vermouth over the gold embroidered Teddy’s Tavern logo. I surveyed the long row of customers sitting at the polished mahogany bar of the upscale restaurant in Hyde Park. Most were dressed in business attire, having just come from work to hit happy hour. They chatted away with their colleagues, all seemingly satisfied—for now. It wouldn’t be long before I was flagged down to make another martini.
“Gia!” Theodore Reeves, also known as Teddy, called out to me from the door leading to the kitchen. “Nat is swamped since the new girl called in. Can you do a sweep of the tables over in section A?”
I glanced over at Natalia, my co-worker and best friend. She definitely looked frazzled.
“On it, Teddy,” I replied with a little salute.
“Thanks, doll. It’s impossible to find good help these days.”
I moved around to the end of the bar and waved him off.
“Come on now. You know they all can’t be perfect like me,” I joked as I headed over to my friend. When Natalia saw me, I watched her shoulders visibly sag with relief. “What can I help you with?”
“Table seven and nine need drink refills. Table five’s food should be ready in the kitchen. Take your pick. Grab the drinks or get the food,” she said in a rush. A strand of jet-black hair fell loose from her ponytail and she hastily tucked it behind her ear.
“I’ll get the drinks. That way I can keep an eye on the bar customers too,” I suggested.
“Good idea. I can’t believe how slammed we are today! With the Danbury Musical Festival going on, I thought it would be slower.”
I cocked one eyebrow and leaned in closer to her so I wasn’t overheard by any of the patrons.
“Seriously, Nat? What you see here is Cincinnati’s most prestigious yuppie crowd. Do you honestly think any of them would be going to see Fall Out Boy or Sublime?”
She smirked, then pinched up her face as though she was trying to picture it.
“No, I suppose you’re right. I can’t imagine this swanky bunch anywhere near a mosh pit.”
I laughed, patting her shoulder, then headed in the direction of the tables needing drink refills.
Five hours later, the restaurant had cleared out and there were only a few stragglers left at the bar. I leaned on the back counter watching Natalia as she counted our tips for the night. She handed me a stack of cash totaling six hundred dollars.
“Good night for tips,” I mused, grabbing my purse from under the bar. Separating the money, I put half in my wallet and the rest into a worn, tattered white envelope. After I put my purse back under the counter, I glanced up to see Natalia staring at me with a sad look on her face.
“What?” I asked.
“Just thinking, toots. That’s all.”
“Thinking about what?”
“About how long it’s going to be before your mom’s bills are paid off,” she quietly replied.
Emotion scorched my throat and I tried to ignore the stab of pain I felt whenever I was reminded of my mother. Natalia was referring to the credit card debt I racked up trying to help my mother pay for the prescription drugs she needed to survive the death grip cancer had ensnared her in. She’d had decent health insurance, but sometimes it wasn’t enough. At the end of the day, nothing I did mattered. No amount of money spent was enough to save her. I lost her to ovarian cancer nearly a year ago and I still missed her something fierce. Unfortunately, the small life insurance policy she had was only enough to cover the burial expenses and I was stuck paying off the mountain of credit card debt.
“I only owe another few thousand,” I said with a shrug.
Four thousand two hundred ninety-eight to be exact, but who’s counting?
“After they’re paid, what comes next?”
I pursed my lips and contemplated her question. I knew what she was asking. Both of us frequently talked about our bucket lists and all the things we wanted to accomplish before we turned thirty. The only thing holding me back from scratching things off my list was the credit card debt. Once that was paid, I could begin to really live my life for the first time.
“I know we talked about traveling but I think I want to go to college first,” I blurted out.
“College? You’ve never mentioned that before.”
“Yeah, well… the money might be good at Teddy’s, but I don’t want to work here forever.”
“Hey, I heard that!” shouted Teddy. “What’s wrong with being a lifer?”
“Being a lifer means I won’t be able to take a month off to backpack across Europe. Mark my words—I will do that one day. But,” I drawled out in a teasing voice, “maybe I’ll stick around part-time just for you, old man.”
Ben snorted a laugh which earned him a scowl from Teddy.
“This place wouldn’t be the same without you,” Teddy grumbled.
“And what about me?” Natalia asked accusingly.
“Alright, you too,” Teddy begrudgingly admitted, but we could all tell it was in jest. “You girls keep this place running like a well-oiled machine, and the customers love you too.”
I was about to respond but the sound of a glass being slammed down on the bar stopped me.
“Hey, if you can wrap it up anytime soon, I need another drink down here!” yelled a man sitting five stools to my left.
I straightened quickly and headed his way. He was scowling, but I simply plastered a sweet smile on my face and reached for his glass—which I had literally filled just ten minutes before. I tossed Ben a sideways glance to signal we might need to keep an eye on the guy.
“Sorry to keep you waiting, sir. Another Jameson? Neat, right?”
“That’s right,” he confirmed, watching me through narrowed eyes. The guy wasn’t a regular customer, of that I was sure, nor did this seem like a place he’d frequent. Almost everyone who came to the upscale tavern looked like they just stepped off the pages of a Nordstrom catalog. The five-star restaurant reeked of class—but definitely not this guy. He was sloppy in an unbuttoned plaid flannel with a faded concert tee underneath. His hair was a mess and he desperately needed a shave. He appeared more suited for the crowd at the music festival than Teddy’s. Still, he was handsome in a rugged sort of way.
I grabbed a napkin, placed the drink on top of it, and slid it across the bar to him. I was about to ask if he needed anything else when he grabbed hold of my wrist. I tried to tug my hand free but he held firm as his gaze roamed up and down my body. I fought the urge to roll my eyes. When you worked behind a bar, getting hit on by guys who overindulged in their booze tended to be a nightly occurrence. Nine out of ten times, the best thing to do was kill them with kindness and move along.
“Would you like something to eat? The kitchen is technically closed but I’m sure I can get the cook to throw something together for you,” I told him with a sugary sweet smile on my face.
“I don’t want nothin’ to eat,” he slurred. “I heard the customers here love you. I can see why. What’s not to love about that tight little ass of yours? Gia, that’s your name, right?”
The smile I’d plastered on fell. When my strategy of killing them with kindness didn’t work, a blunter approach never failed.
“Gianna, actually. Only my friends call me Gia,” I pointed out, making it clear he was very much not my friend. When I tried to pull my hand away again, he only squeezed tighter. I took in his glassy eyes and a chill raced down my spine. He most likely started drinking well before he wandered into Teddy’s and he was giving me a serious case of the creeps. “Sir, please let go of me.”
“What if I don’t wanna?” he sneered.
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Ben jump from his chair. Before he could get to the creepy guy, another man with dark, wavy hair abruptly stood up. He’d been quietly sitting two stools down and I’d nearly forgotten he was even there. The dark-haired man grabbed the drunk guy by the front of his scruffy t-shirt and spun him around. Everything happened so fast yet it unfolded like a slow-motion video replay at the same time.
“The lady said let go of her,” the man growled.
Startled, my very drunk customer swayed slightly as he put both hands up in the air.
“What the fuck, man! I was only jokin’ around with her.”
“Take your jokes elsewhere. They aren’t funny here.”
I saw Ben slowly moving toward the two men, braced for a potential fight. Teddy wasn’t far behind him, both looking like mountain lions stalking their prey.
“You heard the man. Take your jokes elsewhere,” Ben reiterated, stepping between the two men in an attempt to defuse things in a non-violent way. The entire situation was bizarre. Altercations like this just didn’t happen at Teddy’s Tavern.
His glazed eyes landed sluggishly on each of the men surrounding him. Then he looked at me, scowled, and took a step back.
“Alright, alright. I get your point. I’m goin’,” he said. Without another word, he not-so-gracefully sauntered out of the tavern, defiantly tipping over every empty chair he passed on his way to the door.
“Asshole,” Natalia muttered.
“I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have interfered like that. It’s instinct I guess,” said the dark-haired man. I turned my attention back to him and watched as he pulled out his wallet to flash a shiny badge at me. Apparently, my rescuer wasn’t just a nice guy—he was a cop too.
I shook my head and rubbed my wrist.
“No, it’s okay. I’m just glad he left before things escalated. Um… thank you for your help,” I said with a small shrug. “How about a drink? On the house,” I offered.
“Maybe another time. I need to get going,” he said. Reaching into the pocket of the leather tri-fold wallet, he tossed a fifty on the table. “That piece of shit didn’t pay for his drinks but that should cover it. Enjoy the rest of your night, Gianna.”
I paused at the way my name sounded coming from his lips. I knew he must have heard my conversation with the drunk guy, but there was just something about the way it rolled off his tongue that made me flush. I took another look at my rescuer. He was attractive—very attractive actually. With all the commotion, I hadn’t taken a moment to appreciate his sculpted cheekbones and full mouth. He appeared older than me but still had a youthful look that made me think he wasn’t more than thirty. His eyes were a deep brown, nearly matching the dark waves on his head. His crisp white shirt stretched over the wide span of his shoulders, tapering down to tuck into the trim waistline of his khaki pants.
He flashed a crooked grin, completely captivating me. Whether he knew it or not, he was charming—but not in an obvious sort of way. When he started to walk away, I impulsively called out to him.
“Wait! I don’t know your name!”
He glanced over his shoulder and afforded me another sexy, crooked smile.
“It’s Ethan. Ethan Walker. Maybe I’ll see you around, Gianna.”
Then… he left.
As soon as the tavern door closed behind him, Natalia pounced.
“Gia, oh my God! That guy was fucking gorgeous! And he’s clearly into you!”
