Thick Love
Eden Butler
Contents
Copyright
Praise for Eden Butler’s Work
Also by Eden Butler
Dedication
Author’s Note
Thick Love Playlist
Prologue
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Epilogue
Acknowledgments
Haitian Creole Words and Phrases
Hawaiian Words and Phrases
About the Author
Thick Love
Copyright © 2015 Eden Butler
All rights reserved as permitted under the U.S. Copyright Act of 1976. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, transmitted in any form or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system, without the prior permission of the Author. For information regarding subsidiary rights, please contact the Author Publisher.
Edited by Sharon Browning
Copyedits by Karen Chapman
Cover Design by Steven Novack
Image Edits by Alleskelle
Cover Image by ShutterShock
Section Headers by Chelle Bliss
Formatting by Brian Morgan
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead, is coincidental.
The author acknowledges the copyrighted or trademarked status and trademark owners of any mentioned word-marks and references mentioned in this work of fiction.
Praise for Eden Butler’s Work
“Butler writes with a stylistic, descriptive flair that emphasizes the burdens of carrying physical and emotional wounds. She creates characters destined for each other and ready for life’s lessons. Chasing Serenity holds promise that the series roll-out will create Serenity-aholics.”
—Michelle Monkou, USA Today
“I loved this book! The hero is a tatted up Irish rugby player who has traveled to the states to play for college. Like the heroine he has a tragic past and when Autumn and Declan meet sparks fly! Nice to read a book that is anything but predictable.”
—Kele Moon, author of the Battered Hearts series
“This book explores emotional heartache, but on different levels. It’s not just about romantic love, but about the love of family (and “family” takes on a whole new meaning. It encompasses friends, too). From disconnect to possible re-connect. From old scars that refuse to heal, to potential emotional mending. You’ll feel it, deep.”
—Maryse Black, Maryse’s Book Blog
“Eden Butler has captivated my heart. From the town she created with its love of rugby to its foundation of friendship and family, I find I wish I could hop on a bus and stay there a while. The characters as flawed yet beautiful, broken yet unbelievably strong. Layers of intense feelings are still trapped in my heart.”
—Nichole Hart, Sizzling Pages Romance Reviews”
“Read [Thin Love] in one sitting! Without a doubt, my favorite dynamic of bad boy meets feisty good girl. Superb writing!”
—Penelope Douglas New York Times bestselling author of Bully and Until You
“Thin Love is more than just a book. It’s more than a story. It’s a journey—an experience that grabs you by the gut and won’t let go until it’s ready to release you. And damn, what a release it is. Eden Butler nailed it.”
— Lila Felix , bestselling author of Love and Skate
“By far my favorite Eden Butler novel. Keira and Kona’s chemistry is electric and leaps off the pages!”
—Chelle Bliss, USA Today Bestselling Author of the Men of Inked series
“I felt so connected to these characters and this story that it almost felt too personal to share it with anyone. But rest assured, I will be shouting the praises of Thin Love and Mrs. Butler from the rooftops so that I can make sure others experience what I have.”
—Lori Westhaver, Red’s Book Blog
“There is a bold mission when [Butler] puts pen to paper to grab our attention, open our hearts, and engage our imagination. Butler didn’t hold back with crafting these characters from different cultures, tossing in some major adversity, and challenging them to dig deep for inner strength. At the end of the day, Thin Love is hearty blend for the soul.”
—Michelle Monkou, USA Today
Also by Eden Butler
Chasing Serenity, Book 1
Behind the Pitch, a novella (Book 1.5)
Finding Serenity, Book 2
Claiming Serenity Book 3
Thin Love, Book 1
My Beloved, a novella (Book 1.5)
Thick Love, Book 2
Swimming in Shadows, a novella (Book .5)
Shadows and Lies, Book 1
For the readers who wanted Ransom to have a turn.
Thank you for waiting for him to grow up.
And for Karen who always talks me off the ledge.
Author’s Note
Dear Reader—
Thin Love was a second chance story about two passionate, a wee bit crazy, young people who lost and found each other many times. Thick Love is about their eighteen year old son and his own disheartening struggle to forgive, to love and to sort out what he wants and what he needs. He does this on his own long journey to becoming a man. It’s not an easy road. There are many hurdles, and some damn big potholes.
Thick Love is not Thin Love, part two. This is Ransom’s story, not a generational rehashing of his parents’ tale. The heartaches he gives and receives on his journey are his and his alone. Please trust that I have very specific reasons for telling you this and please know that this is not the last you will see of Ransom and Aly. That’s the beauty of fiction—it makes jumping to the future possible.