The Persistence of Thornes

By: Micalea Smeltzer

Narrated by: Kasi Hollowell, Gregory Salinas

Hawthorne Mills is supposed to be my chance to start over with my brothers.

Becoming their guardian wasn't the plan, but I'll do anything it takes to keep them from being put in the system. Even if it means raising two teenage boys when I'm only twenty-three.

There's one thing I don't expect—Caleb Thorne.

He's literally descended from the founding family of the town and is practically royalty here. And also my new neighbor. Which makes him privy to every screw up I make trying to navigate being a parental figure to my younger brothers.

It should be easy enough for me to avoid him, but he's annoyingly persistent in wanting to help me. I call it pity even if he insists it's not.

The worst part is there's undeniable chemistry between us, and the more time we spend together, the harder it becomes to resist.

But nothing good in my life has ever lasted, so I fully expect Caleb to be another of those temporary things.

Especially when my past demons finally catch up with me.

©2025 Micalea Smeltzer (P)2025 Podium Audio

Caleb finally gets the beautiful ending he deserves!

The entire time I was listening to the Wildflowers duet, Caleb quickly grew to be my favorite character. I was just thinking the whole time how he was such a kind hearted spirit as well as a giver and the poor man kept getting the short end of the stick.

Enter Halle and her brothers Cason and Quinn. They were exactly what he needed in his life and vise a versa. Seeing these characters grow together made my heart so happy. Halle and her troubled past caused her to feel like she wasn’t deserving of someone as kind as Caleb and to see her grow into a more confident woman throughout the book was very satisfying.

The found family aspect of this book has quickly become one of my top books that include this trope.

This book will be much more satisfying if you read/listen to The Wildflowers duet FIRST. In fact, I think it’s a must. Caleb plays a huge part in that story and this one just won’t hit as hard without those books.

I am so so happy and satisfied with the conclusion of this story…Now we just need a Laith book 😏