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Till There Was You: The Thorntons Book 6 Contents
Chapter 1Chapter 2Chapter 3Chapter 4Chapter 5Chapter 6Chapter 7Chapter 8Chapter 9Chapter 10Chapter 11Chapter 12Chapter 13Chapter 14Chapter 15Chapter 16Chapter 17Chapter 18Chapter 19EpilogueEnjoy this exclusive excerptAlso by Iris MorlandAbout the Author
Till There Was You: The Thorntons Book 6 Copyright
This book is a work of fiction. The names, characters, places and incidents are products of the writer’s imagination or have been used fictitiously and are not to be constructed as real. Any resemblance to persons, living or dead, actual events, locales or organizations is entirely coincidental.Till There Was You (The Thorntons Book 6)Published by Blue Violet Press LLCSeattle, WashingtonCopyright © 2017 by Iris MorlandCover design by Resplendent MediaAll rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
Till There Was You: The Thorntons Book 6 Chapter 1
Jubilee Thornton swore when her coffeepot—the one thing she could rely on in a world full of chaos—spluttered, popped, and then seemed to breathe its last. Two tablespoons of coffee splashed into the pot below, and she was almost tempted to drink it anyway.When had her life gotten this pathetic?At the age of twenty-five, she’d never dated, never gone to college, never even left her hometown. She lived in a tiny apartment in Fair Haven, Washington, and worked at her sister-in-law Megan’s bakery, The Rise and Shine. And to top it all off, today her coffeepot just had to die, because apparently getting her caffeine fix was too much to ask.“Come on. Don’t do this to me today,” she muttered to the appliance in question as she began to fiddle with the controls. Despite trying everything she could think of to get it to start again, she had to accept that her coffeepot had finally kicked the bucket.She could wait for coffee, she told herself. She worked at a bakery that served all kind
Till There Was You: The Thorntons Book 6 Chapter 2
Jubilee dumped her purse onto her bed when she arrived home, searching through all the various items for that damn list. Swearing, she dug around in her pockets, her coat pockets, even inside her shoes.No list.Hadn’t Megan returned it to her before Heath had come into The Rise and Shine? She couldn’t remember. She’d heard the bell while she and Megan had been adding things to the list, and then she’d seen Heath, and her brain had essentially turned to mush.She texted Megan, Do you have my list?To which Megan replied a few minutes later, No, don’t you have it?That meant that that list was somewhere in The Rise and Shine. Jubilee almost considered going back to look around, but that seemed like overkill. If someone picked it up, she hoped they threw it away, thinking it was trash.Oh God, she thought suddenly, what if Heath picked it up?That thought sent a chill straight through her, although it was mostly embarrassment she felt overall. She’d never live it down if he saw th
Till There Was You: The Thorntons Book 6 Chapter 3
“There he is.” Megan tilted her head toward the bar. “And he’s not with anyone, either.”Jubilee smoothed her hair, fighting the temptation to check her lipstick for the thousandth time. After losing her list, Jubilee had been so concerned about who might have seen it that she’d been tempted to abandon the scheme altogether.Megan, however, refused to let her. “Who cares if someone found it?” she’d said. “You made a resolution and you’re sticking with it, woman.”Jubilee, Megan and Mark Thornton’s wife, Abby, were at a bar that had recently opened in Fair Haven. Normally they’d go to The Fainting Goat, but Jubilee hadn’t wanted Trent, or worse, any of her brothers, to find out what she was doing.Tonight would be the first time she’d ask a guy out. How had she managed to get to the age of twenty-five without doing something like this? How embarrassing.Her first “target” (Megan’s word) was Ash Younger. Ash was handsome and tall, his arms bulging through the cotton of his t-shirt.
Till There Was You: The Thorntons Book 6 Chapter 4
Jubilee checked her phone for what felt like the thousandth time that day. Irritation filled her when she saw that Heath hadn’t texted her. He hadn’t texted her since theirencounterat the bar last Saturday. Now it was Friday, and Jubilee was itching to finish work and march over to his house.Or so she thought. She didn’t know if she had the balls to do that. What had she been thinking, making that bargain with him? When she’d gotten home and slept off the alcohol, she’d woken up with almost more regret than pain in her head. But she’d been so frustrated at him interfering that she’d wanted to shock him. She hadn’t expected him to say yes.She hadn’t told Megan or Abby what had happened with Heath. She’d only said that she’d decided that Ash Younger wasn’t the guy for her and she’d “try out” a different one that weekend. If Megan had sounded skeptical when Jubilee had told her this on Monday, she hadn’t tried to pry any further information from her, either.“Jubi, hey? D
Till There Was You: The Thorntons Book 6 Chapter 5
“Here you go,” Jubilee said as she handed the Americano and blueberry muffin to a woman not much younger than her. “Is that all?”“I haven’t had a muffin in six months.” The girl inhaled the scent of sugar and blueberries and moaned aloud. “I’m tempted to buy all of them and eat them in one go.”Jubilee laughed. “Maybe just start with one. Although our pumpkin spice muffin is really good, too.”The girl groaned, paid for her food, and left before she could be tempted further. It was mid-morning, and the early morning rush had petered out.Jubilee drummed her fingers against the counter. She’d already wiped down all the tables and organized the baked goods in the glass case after the usual morning depletion. Megan was currently in the back finishing up a batch of bread, and Jubilee could smell it baking. Even though she’d been working here for two years now, her stomach still rumbled at how amazing it always smelled.Had it really been two years since she’d moved out of her parents
Till There Was You: The Thorntons Book 6 Chapter 6
An hour into her date with Brian, Jubilee rather wished she’d stayed home. Watching some trashy reality show on TV would’ve been more exciting than listening to Brian talk about which Star Trekseries was the best one.“Enterpriseis best, butDiscoveryis my second favorite.” Brian took a swig of his pale ale, his third one for the night. “Have you ever watchedStar Trek?”Jubilee forced a smile. “No, I haven’t.”“Oh, then I need to tell you where to start. People think you should start with the first episode filmed, but I totally disagree with that.” Brian whipped out his phone and began to text her something. “I sent you the best-watching order, including all of the movies. Except the most recent movie, which was trash.”Jubilee drank her wine and considered if it would really be rude to go to the bathroom and never come back. Brian was perfectly nice, but he wasboring.He’d barely asked her anything about herself. She had a feeling if she ask
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Till There Was You: The Thorntons Book 6 About the Author
A coffee addict and cat lover, Iris Morland writes sexy and funny contemporary romances. If she's not reading or writing, she enjoys binging on Netflix shows and cooking something delicious.Stay in touch!irismorland.comIris Morland’s MermaidsNewsletter Facebook Twitter BookBub Goodreads Instagram
Till There Was You: The Thorntons Book 6 Also by Iris Morland
Say You’re MineAll I Ask of YouMake Me YoursHold Me CloseOopsie DaisyHe Loves Me, He Loves Me NotPetal PluckerWar of the RosesincludingThen Came YouTaking a Chance on LoveAll I Want Is YouMy One and OnlyThe Nearness of YouThe Very Thought of YouIf I Can’t Have YouDream a Little Dream of MeSomeone to Watch Over MeTill There Was YouI’ll Be Home for Christmas
Till There Was You: The Thorntons Book 6 Enjoy this exclusive excerpt
Violet couldn’t imagine where Ash wanted to take her at one thirty in the morning that wasn’t to his place. When she said that she trusted him, her boring, logical side yelled, You don’t know him! Go home! You’re crazy!And yet...her intuition told her she could trust him. She trusted that when he said he wanted to have “good, clean, wholesome fun,” he meant it. At least, as much as Ash Younger could do anything wholesome.She followed Ash down the street and out of the small downtown area. Tipping her head back, she could make out a few stars, and she felt like they were the only two people in the entire world. The town was so quiet. The only sounds were a dog barking and a single car driving by.When they arrived at the playground, Violet let out a startled laugh. “This is what you had in mind?”“What, do you have something against swings?” Ash sat down in one of the swings that was so low to the ground—especially considering that he had to be over six feet tall—that Violet start
Till There Was You: The Thorntons Book 6 Epilogue
Jubilee woke up to sunshine and birdsong. It was ridiculous, really, how gorgeous it was going to be today. Then again, after a rainy winteranda rainy spring, any sunshine was welcome.“Good morning,” she said as she passed her roommate Renee on the way to the bathroom. Jubilee had found Renee’s listing online for a roommate, and after a few emails back and forth, Renee had asked her to move in. Two weeks after New Year’s, Jubilee had packed up everything she wanted into her new car and driven to Seattle to start her new life as a college student.Her family had wanted to help her move, and it had taken all of Jubilee’s powers of persuasion to convince her brothers she didn’t have enough things to warrant all of them coming with her.“Heath is helping me, anyway. I’m not even taking much furniture with me.”Harrison, though, had convinced her he’d like to help, and Jubilee had finally agreed. During the Thornton Christmas get-together with all of her siblings and their
Till There Was You: The Thorntons Book 6 Chapter 19
“Are you sure you don’t want me to stay with you tonight? I don’t think you should be alone.”Jubilee bit back a sharp reply, knowing all too well that her mother meant well. Lisa Thornton hadn’t left Jubilee’s side from the moment she’d found out about her car accident. Not only Lisa, but the entire Thornton clan had shown up at Fair Haven Memorial, demanding to know what had happened.Jubilee knew she’d been lucky. Despite everything, she’d only suffered a cut to her forehead from flying glass, which had only needed some stitches, along with a minor concussion. She’d been released from the hospital after forty-eight hours. The attending physician had said that she should take it easy and come back to the ER if she suffered any kind of dizziness or nausea, but so far, all Jubilee felt was tired.“Mom, I’ll be okay. Really. I just want to sleep.”Lisa looked like she wanted to protest, but then she just sighed deeply. “All right. Please call me if you need me. I’ll come straight aw
Till There Was You: The Thorntons Book 6 Chapter 18
Jubilee shivered as her car very slowly heated up. After a lot of persuasion (or, in Jubilee’s mind, nagging), she’d agreed to go to her parents’ place for dinner. Lisa had told her she wanted to talk, which Jubilee knew really meant listening to Lisa lecture her about whatever she’d decided Jubilee had done wrong.She’d never understand why Lisa was so set on keeping Jubilee from living her own life. She’d always be grateful for everything Lisa had sacrificed for Jubilee during her treatments, but when would Lisa finally realize that she had to let go?Jubilee had found an apartment in Seattle and had begun packing up her things for her move. Although it was tinged with sadness and loss, it also provided a distraction from thinking about Heath every hour of every day. Last night, though, she’d read her infamous list for the thousandth time before taking a lighter and burning it until it was nothing but ashes.At least she wouldn’t be stuck in Fair Haven, running into Heath all the
Till There Was You: The Thorntons Book 6 Chapter 17
Jubilee stared at the bowl of batter in front of her. She’d completely forgotten what she’d been making. Banana bread? Pumpkin bread? She knew most of the recipes Megan used at The Rise and Shine by heart, so she couldn’t just read what she’d need.Staring at that bowl of nondescript batter, Jubilee felt tears rising. It was stupid, really, how anything could make her cry lately. It had been two weeks since she’d broken things off with Heath, and she missed him. She missed him like she missed a severed limb—or a piece of heart.She still loved him. She wished she could push that love aside and move on, but her heart wouldn’t let her. Every night, she dreamed of him. Every time she heard the bell jangle at The Rise and Shine, she looked up, hoping it was him.But it never was. He didn’t come to her apartment to beg her to come back; he didn’t stop by her work to tell her he was an idiot. He didn’t call her to say he’d been a coward to let her end things.She’d wanted him to fight fo
Till There Was You: The Thorntons Book 6 Chapter 16
Jubilee stared straight ahead as she sat in the driver’s side of her car, Heath silent in the passenger seat. She’d initially thought they could talk at her apartment, but the thought of going there, where Heath had first touched her and shaken her world, seemed unbearable right then.Jubilee shivered despite the heater going full blast. She’d tried to get the water out of her hair, but then it had seemed so pointless in the grand scheme of things.Heath had lied to her. When she’d asked him if something was going on, he’d lied to her face without flinching.So she waited, hoping he had an explanation she could understand, if not swallow so they could move on.“I should’ve told you everything a long time ago,” Heath admitted. He sighed. “I didn’t know how to tell you, Jubilee. And I didn’t want to lay that burden on you.”She flinched, but she said nothing. She knew well enough that one of the best ways to get people to talk was to wait. The words inevitably spilled out in an atte
Till There Was You: The Thorntons Book 6 Chapter 15
Jubilee took out the infamous list and crossed outLose my virginity, smiling widely. She’d been able to accomplish a handful of things on this list already, hadn’t she? Except for one, which now glared at her with seemingly neon letters.Go skinny-dippingConsidering it was now December, she wasn’t sure how she’d pull that off without freezing off her bits and pieces. She could always wait until summer, but then she’d be in Seattle, wouldn’t she?If only she could find a hot tub in town to use instead…She sent off a quick text to her sister Lizzie, who would be the most useful person for accomplishing this. Lizzie texted back readily, and then Jubilee found herself waiting outside one of the swim clubs in Fair Haven for Heath to show up. This particular club sat on a hill overlooking Fair Haven, which made it feel private.Heath did show at the appointed time, giving her a wry look as they stood outside the gates that were closed for the winter. “Are we breaking and enterin
