Finding Grace Read online

  Love’s

  Compass

  Book Six

  Finding Grace

  Melanie D. Snitker

  Finding Grace

  (Love’s Compass: Book 6)

  © 2018 Melanie D. Snitker

  Published by

  Dallionz Media, LLC

  P.O. Box 6821

  Abilene, TX 79608

  Cover: Blue Valley Author Services

  http://www.bluevalleyauthorservices.com/

  Editor: Krista R. Burdine

  http://iamgrammaresque.com/

  All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the author, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law. Please purchase only authorized editions.

  For permission requests, please contact the author at the e-mail below or through her website.

  Melanie D. Snitker

  [email protected]

  www.melaniedsnitker.com

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events, and incidents either are the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.

  Love’s Compass: Book Six

  Finding Grace

  By Melanie D. Snitker

  All rights reserved

  Copyright © 2018 Melanie D. Snitker

  ASIN: B077ZH7H4W

  ISBN: 9780997528985

  For our daughter, Sydney.

  I treasure the moments we spend

  having tea parties, reading together,

  and talking about our days.

  You are beautiful inside and out, and

  I’m blessed to be your mommy.

  I love you, sweet girl.

  Contents

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen

  Chapter Eighteen

  Epilogue

  Acknowledgments

  Connect with Melanie

  Books by Melanie D. Snitker

  Marrying Mandy Preview

  Chapter One

  “Look, Daddy!”

  Tyler Martin instinctively reached for the back of his young daughter’s shirt to steady her. Megan stood on the lower rung of the railing, completely oblivious to the eight-foot drop the railing was protecting her from.

  Meg pointed to the peacock who was putting on quite the display, his feathers fanned out and glimmering in the sun. “Look! Aren’t his feathers pretty?”

  “They sure are. Hop down, baby. You don’t need to climb on the railing.”

  Tyler released her shirt as soon as her feet were firmly on the wooden walkway. The raised observation area was a favorite place at the Kitner Zoo. On one side, the small herd of giraffes was visible. On the other, he could see a number of bird habitats along the section below.

  The peacock only kept Meg’s interest for a few moments before she was on a mission again. She’d talked for days about going to the dock area and feeding the carp.

  “Hold on there, Meg. What did we agree on before we got here?”

  Meg’s lower lip came out. Tyler marveled at how his six-year-old daughter could seem overly mature one moment, and then revert to a pouting mess—albeit a cute one—another. “I really want to see the fish. Can we go now, Daddy? Please?”

  “We will see the fish. After we finish looking at the rest of the zoo.” She continued to pout, and Tyler frowned. “I suggest you pick up that bottom lip, or we’ll go home.” Amazing how quickly her scowl disappeared. The stubborn look in her eyes, though, only intensified. Tyler chose to ignore it and led the way toward the other end of the zoo. Meg’s little legs moved quickly to keep up, her gaze down on the ground at her feet.

  Tyler might have caved and taken her to the fish next if these attitude issues and the lack of listening hadn’t been such a common theme lately. He reached for her little hand and held it in his. A moment or two later, he stopped at a bench when he noticed the laces on one of his shoes had come untied. “Hold on, Meg. Let me fix my shoe.”

  He released her hand, tied his shoe, and turned to speak to Meg.

  Except she wasn’t there. The empty pavement beside him startled Tyler as surely as a loud noise might have. “Meg?”

  He pivoted, taking in the crowd of people around him. He expected to see her waiting only feet away. But there was no sign of her dark hair or the bright pink shirt she was wearing. “Meg!”

  A boulder settled in his gut as his heart pounded in his ears. He stepped on a chair and then stood on top of a table to get a better look at the area around him. God, help me find her. Watch over my baby girl.

  ~

  Beth Davenport carefully boxed the glass snow globe. She opened a paper bag printed with the Kitner Zoo logo and set the box inside.

  “I’ll take two of these also, please.”

  Her customer handed Beth a pair of tiny, plastic flamingos. She scanned them, placed them in an envelope, and added that to the bag. “Is there anything else I can get for you?”

  “I think that’s it.” The older woman smiled brightly and took a wallet out of her purse.

  Beth finished ringing up the purchase, relayed the price, and slid the debit card through the reader to finish the transaction. She tucked the receipt inside. “There you go. Thank you for visiting our zoo today. I hope you had a wonderful time.”

  The other woman tilted her head toward two young children looking at a display with an older gentleman. “We brought the grandkids today, and it was fun. Especially the zoo train. The grandkids enjoyed it, and it gives my old bones a rest.” She laughed at her own joke.

  Beth smiled and nodded. “I’ve heard a lot of good things from our visitors. I need to try it myself soon.”

  She waved goodbye as she watched the group of four leave the gift shop.

  Ever since the zoo added the miniature train over the summer, traffic had increased noticeably. The Kitner Zoo was already a popular attraction, but it was good for business to see so many more visitors coming in.

  Monique, one of Beth’s coworkers, walked around the counter and locked the main door to the gift shop. It was four in the afternoon, and the zoo wouldn’t admit any new guests, but it would be another hour before it closed completely. Customers could still come into the gift shop through the back door that connected it to the zoo.

  “Whoo, girl. I’m worn out.” Monique rolled her shoulders back dramatically. “It’s been non-stop today. I’m ready to go home.”

  “Me, too.” Beth suppressed a yawn. Monique manned the gift shop most days, and Beth often helped her at least a couple days a week. They’d gotten to know each other well over the last two years, and Beth considered Monique a friend.

  “When are they going to start training you to lead tours?”

  Beth smiled. “A week from Monday.” When she’d first started working at the zoo, she’d hoped to help with classes and interact with the children. But what her boss, Chris, needed was someone to help run the gift shop. After diligently doing her job, Beth finally had a chance to expand a little more.

>   It started out by going along to help load and unload animals when the zookeepers visited the schools. She didn’t get to go as often as she’d like to, but her willingness to fill in when needed was noted. Leading tours was just another step toward her goal. The idea that she might be conducting her own tours soon made Beth excited for next week and induced a flock of butterflies fluttering around in her stomach at the same time.

  Beth loved her job at the zoo. The variety of tasks appealed to her. She could see the animals every day, interact with people who were there to have fun, and it gave her time in the evenings to write. Eventually, with God’s help and the right timing, she hoped to make a living authoring and publishing children’s books. Until then, her time at the zoo always fostered more ideas for books than she had time to put on paper.

  The back door opened, ushering in the slightly cooler early October breeze. Beth finished stacking some flyers and didn’t look up from her task. A minute or two later, she heard a sniff and the sound of someone softly crying. Brows wrinkled, she came around the counter and scanned the inside of the gift shop. No one was in sight.

  Another little whimper pulled her to the back wall where stuffed animals lined the shelves. A giant giraffe as tall as Beth stood by a display. Sitting next to it, with her arms wrapped around a plush lion, was a little girl. Tears streaked her face. When she looked up at Beth, her eyes laden with worry and sadness, Beth’s heart crumbled.

  She knelt in front of the girl she guessed to be five or six. “Hey, sweetie. Where are your parents?”

  “I…I can’t find my daddy.” The girl hiccupped and then wiped her face on the stuffed animal in her arms.

  Beth forced herself to not flinch at the mix of moisture on the animal’s fur. She sat on the floor next to the girl. “What’s your name?”

  “Meg.” She hiccupped again, but the tears had slowed.

  Monique came around the display, a phone in her hand. “Everything okay?”

  Beth tipped her head toward her young charge. “Meg here is lost.” She focused on the little girl. “You know what? If you can tell me your daddy’s name, I’ll bet Monique can find him.”

  Meg looked hopeful. “Really?”

  Monique smiled. “Really.” Meg told them his name was Tyler Martin. “Great job. You sit here with Beth, and I’ll see what I can do.”

  “Okay.”

  Beth reached out and brushed some of the girl’s dark hair away from her eyes. “I’ll bet your daddy is looking everywhere for you right now. How did you two get separated?”

  Meg’s gaze fell, and her lower lip stuck out a little. “I got mad and left when he wasn’t watching. Then I couldn’t find him again.”

  A memory from when Beth was a girl not much younger than Meg resurfaced. “I did something like that when I was your age. I have an older brother and three older sisters, and I got jealous when it seemed like they were helping my mom shop more than I could. When no one was looking, I ran away from the basket and hid down one of the aisles. I thought it would make my mommy feel bad, and she’d give me more to do.” She gave an exaggerated frown. “But guess what?” She barely heard the page go out across the zoo announcing the missing girl.

  Meg cuddled the lion to her. “What?”

  “It did make her feel bad, but I think I felt even worse.” She could still remember the way Mom cried when they finally found each other again. Beth didn’t think she’d ever forget the look on her face. “I was so scared, I never did that again.”

  The girl took in a shaky breath. “I’m never going to run away again, either.”

  “That’s good, I’m glad to hear it.” She stood and had reached for Meg’s hand to help her up when the door to the gift shop whooshed open.

  A man looked around the room, his movements frantic. “I heard the page. I’m Tyler Martin. Meg’s here? You have her?”

  “Daddy!”

  Meg dropped the stuffed lion. She made her way through the obstacle course of displays and jumped into the man’s arms.

  Beth followed, a smile tugging her lips upward as she watched the reunion.

  Tyler set his daughter down, knelt to her level, and gave her a stern look. “Don’t you ever do that again, young lady. I don’t care how mad you get, you don’t run off like that. Am I understood?”

  Meg’s chin drifted down, and she bobbed her head slowly.

  “I can’t hear you.”

  “Yes, sir.”

  Beth’s heart went out to Tyler. She could only imagine how much of a nightmare it must’ve been for him to discover his child missing.

  Tyler cupped his daughter’s face in his hands. “If you promise to not let go of my hand, we can finish looking at the zoo. What do you think?”

  Meg nodded again and held on tight.

  He stood, lifting his daughter into his arms. Only then did his gaze stray from her face. He noticed Beth for the first time, and his eyebrows rose as he strode forward. “I’m sorry about that. I blinked, and she was gone.”

  Beth took in the short beard and mustache. They fit him and made him look sophisticated. She studied his eyes, amazed at how dark brown they were. She forced herself to stop staring at them. “Kids are fast. Trust me, it happens more than you’d think here. I’m glad you two were reunited this quickly.” It was clear Meg resembled her father. Both had hair that was nearly black, the same nose, and a clear love for each other. But where his eyes were dark, Meg’s were green. Beth reached out to pat Meg on the back. “Your daughter was smart to run in here instead of wandering around outside or going to the parking lot.”

  “Trust me, I won’t be letting this girl out of my sight from now on.” He ran his large left hand over Meg’s hair. His nails were neatly trimmed and there was ink or something similar in the nailbeds. Beth noticed he didn’t wear a wedding ring.

  Not that it mattered. She stopped staring at his hand and turned her attention to his face. He gave her a small smile then, and the lighter expression lit up his eyes.

  “I’m more than relieved you found Meg. I can’t thank you enough.”

  His gaze tangled with hers for several moments before Beth cleared her throat. The heat of embarrassment climbed her neck. What was wrong with her? “Not a problem.”

  Tyler nodded to Monique, said thank you, and looked at Beth again. “I guess we’ll be heading home. Here’s to a less eventful evening for us all.”

  Beth chuckled. She waved at their backs as they walked through the door and disappeared. She didn’t hear Monique approach until her coworker spoke from nearby. “I didn’t think they made dads that hot.”

  The comment brought out a short laugh from Beth. She gave her friend a good-natured roll of her eyes. “Come on, we’ve got fifteen minutes left. Let’s get this place closed up. I, for one, am ready to call it a day.”

  She walked back to the front and craned her neck to look out the windows. There was no sign of Tyler and Meg.

  Half an hour later, the coworkers walked together to the parking lot. Monique waved. “See you tomorrow?”

  “I’ll be here.” Beth unlocked her Corolla and got inside. Even though the air was cool, the Texas sun had still managed to heat up the inside of her car. She turned the key and gritted her teeth when it took a moment or two longer than usual for the engine to turn over. She flipped the air conditioner on and pulled out of her parking spot.

  Her mind went back to earlier events. She couldn’t stop thinking about the way Tyler protectively held his daughter. She may not have seen a wedding ring on his finger, but there was no way a guy like him wasn’t attached to someone.

  Loneliness crept in. Like always, it happened when Beth least expected it. She frowned. Spending evenings alone was a small price to pay if it meant avoiding a repeat of her last relationship. Breaking up with Carl had been one of the best things she’d ever done. It was too bad the emotional scars from their time together didn’t disappear as quickly as he had.

  ~

  Tyler kissed Meg on the forehead
. “I love you, baby. Get some sleep.”

  “Good night, Daddy.” She put an arm around her stuffed giraffe and hugged it close. Her eyes drifted closed, her dark lashes creating feathery crescents against her skin.

  His heart squeezed. She was his whole world. If something had happened to her today…

  He stood and shoved the disconcerting thoughts aside. Thank you, Father, for watching over her when I couldn’t. He eased her door closed and headed to the living room. His dad, Bill, was lounging in the recliner, his glasses halfway down the bridge of his nose as he read the newspaper. He looked up over the rims. “She asleep?”

  “Yep.” Tyler flopped onto the couch and put his feet up on the coffee table. “I don’t know what she was thinking running off like that.” His emotions had ping-ponged between anger and relief all evening.

  “She wasn’t, only reacting. You were all over the place at six, and I hear girls are even more emotional.”

  “Wonderful.” He groaned and let his head hit the back of the couch. “I’ve got my work cut out for me, don’t I?”

  Dad chuckled. “You sure do.”

  Tyler shot his dad a stern look. Truthfully, Dad had been more help than any son could possibly hope for. But there were times like these when Tyler wished his mom was still here. Surely, she would have some sage advice about how he was supposed to deal with these new issues of Meg’s. She was his little buddy, and that’d always been enough before. Lately, though, she’d been having attitude problems.

  Tyler could deal with the occasional lying or emotional outbursts. What he hadn’t handled well were her questions about why her mother, Reece, wasn’t around. He’d tried to explain that families are set up differently and not every child has both a mom and dad in the home. Every time Meg brought up the subject, her questions got more and more difficult to answer.

  Most days he thought he had this whole single parenting thing figured out. And then Meg threw him a curveball like she did today.