Finding Hope (Love's Compass Book 2) Read Free Page B

and tried to focus on the fact she would be seeing her little brother for the first time in a week.
    The thought brought a genuine smile to her face. She clung to that as she approached the front door.
    Before she could reach for the knob, it swung open and her mom, Patty, was smiling at her.
    “Come on into the air conditioning, Alexis. It’s a hot one today.”
    Lexi wasn’t going to argue with that. It was the final day of August and September promised to be another scorching month.
    She was ushered inside with a hug. Goose bumps appeared on her arms as the cool air hit her, but they disappeared just as fast. Her eyes scanned the living room and landed on the tall form near the kitchen.
    Tuck glanced up from his conversation with Grams and Laurie to flash that winning smile at her.
    They met in the middle, Tuck easily lifting her until her feet no longer touched the carpet. Lexi chuckled. “It’s good to see you!”
    “You, too. I missed you all.”
    When Lexi’s feet were back on solid ground, she turned to give Laurie a hug as well. “How were the mountains?”
    “They were amazing,” Laurie responded, her eyes shining. “I’m trying to convince Tuck that we need to buy some property and start a farm.”
    “She wants to raise goats.” Tuck said, intentionally wrinkling his nose. He bumped into his new bride.
    “Among other things,” she retorted, leaning into his side.
    The front door opened again and Lexi heard Lance’s voice.
    “I wasn’t sure whether you two would be here or not.” He sat the two bottles of soda and jug of tea down in the kitchen before returning. “I half expected you to call and tell us you’d decided to stay at the dude ranch permanently. Maybe join the rodeo scene.”
    “If we did that, who would keep you in check?”
    Lance threw a punch at Tuck, who expertly deflected it. The men gave each other a bear hug, complete with back pounding.
    “Or maybe you need me to keep tabs on you.” Lance raised an eyebrow at Tuck.
    Lexi shook her head and laughed. The guys had been like this since elementary school and she found the predictability in their friendship to be especially comforting today.
    She exchanged a hug with Grams, and little sister, Serenity, when she came in.
    “Where’s Gideon?”
    Serenity motioned to the hallway behind her. “He’s finishing up a game. I set a timer for him. He should be out in a few minutes.”
    Serenity’s son, who was turning five in November, had autism. The boy had an amazing ability to focus on the task he was completing, but had a hard time transitioning to something new in certain situations. A timer had been an effective way to help signal to him when it was time to move to a new subject or event.
    “How’s work going?”
    Serenity was employed at Powell Elementary School. Now that it was summer, she was working sporadically. Currently, she was in the middle of a two-week session for children with special needs who benefited from academic help through the summer. She shrugged. “Everything is going well. It’s odd to think Gideon will be starting kindergarten over there next fall.”
    “It’ll be a huge blessing for you to be working at the same school he’s attending.”
    “Yes, it will. I’m having a hard time imagining him ready for school by then. But a lot can happen in a year.”
    Serenity carried on a polite conversation before she moved off to speak with Lance and Laurie.
    Lexi fought back a sigh. Her relationship with Serenity had been nothing but polite since before Gideon was born.
    When Serenity had become pregnant with Gideon, her boyfriend left her. Since both of them were teens and immature, Lexi had kept assuring her little sister that once Jay saw the baby, he would change his mind and be a part of their lives. She had built up Serenity’s hope.
    After Gideon was born, Jay was nowhere to be seen. Serenity tried to contact him and convince him to come see his new son. She never saw her boyfriend again.
    As a