Dusty Parker is a Harley riding, tattooed, pony tail wearing preacher who is helping several boys rebuild their lives. He is pastor and administrator of Last Chance, a home for boys who have been taken away from their parents and fallen through the cracks in the legal system. No one else wants them. Dusty hasn't always been a preacher, far from it. He is an ex-marine turned cop, and when he hit rock bottom himself, he decided it was time to turn his own life around.

Grace Sinclair is just finishing up the school year as an English and Art teach at an inner-city high school and is concerned about one of her students. Her Guidance Counselor puts her in touch with someone who may be able to help her figure out what to do for Kylie. That someone is Dusty Parker. She's met him before, at a search and rescue operation for another student who disappeared after prom. There is an instant attraction between the two of them.

As Dusty and Grace work together, they learn they have many things in common; helping hurting kids is one of them. The more they work in partnership, the more they care for each other, and the blending of their lives seems a natural thing to follow. Then an old girlfriend calls Dusty, and his whole life turns upside down. Will Grace and Dusty be able to build a life together in light of this new development?

Loree Lough has given us another great story in her First Responders Series. Her characters are so endearing and full of faith. They all face trials and carry around emotional baggage, yet they put their faith and trust in God and in each other. It's always a joy to catch up with characters from previous stories and see how their lives are developing. Each of her female characters in this series, Mercy, Honor and Grace certainly exhibit the characteristic of their names. You'll laugh and cry at the ups and downs of her story, so beautifully developed. Don't miss MAN OF HONOR or the First Responders series.

Book Summary

On a steamy spring morning, Dusty Parker—part-time pastor, part-time search-and-rescue team member, and full-time administrator of a school for troubled boys—joins the search for a missing teenage girl. He partners with volunteer and inner-city school teacher Grace Sinclair, and what they find bonds them in ways neither could have expected.

As they begin to build their lives together, a visitor from the past causes Dusty and Grace to further open their hearts and home. But a threat is looming on their seemingly perfect lives and in one terrifying night, everything changes.