A Persevering Heart Read online

  Georgia Peaches

  Table of Contents

  Title Page

  A Persevering Heart (Georgia Peaches, #1)

  Copyright

  Series Page

  Author Note

  Book Cover

  Book Description

  Dedication

  Acknowledgments

  Georgia Peaches

  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

  Author Biography

  What’s Next in this Series?

  Coming Soon by Lisa M. Prysock

  A Persevering Heart

  Lisa M. Prysock

  Copyright

  No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means- electronic, mechanical, digital, photocopy, recording or any other—except for brief quotations in printed reviews, without the prior permission of the author.

  A Persevering Heart

  Copyright © 2020 by Lisa M. Prysock

  All rights reserved.

  Clip art and illustrations used are public domain and illustrations by the author noted by initials LP or by Lisa Prysock, if any. Any internet links, addresses, or contact information in this book are not guaranteed for the life of the book.

  Interior text edited and proofed by Tina Caudill Conder.

  Author Photo by Alaina Broyles.

  Cover Artist, Virginia McKevitt, www.virginiamckevitt.com.

  For information or to contact the publisher or author: Lisa Prysock, 7318 Autumn Bent Way, Crestwood, Kentucky, 40014, USA.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or to events or locales, is entirely coincidental.

  This work is cataloged in the Library of Congress.

  Unless paraphrased, otherwise noted or indicated, all Scripture quotations are from the King James Version of the Bible.

  A Persevering Heart

  Copyright © 2020 by Lisa M. Prysock

  All rights reserved.

  ISBN:

  ISBN: 9798626006520

  Imprint: Independently published

  Series Page

  A Persevering Heart, Book 1

  Lisa M. Prysock

  Author Note

  Dear Reader,

  Let’s talk about my daughter who unknowingly inspired me to dream up this series. When she attended a private ministry school in Georgia, we were able to visit the beautiful state a few times. Her fellow students were talented vocalists, musicians, hip hop artists, orators, and more. The students traveled the United States to learn how to minister more effectively, often doing homework on the road. She posted photos on social media of many of her travels for us to enjoy, and then the mission trips began each spring. It was an exciting time and we became enamored and impressed with her school as she studied.

  After she became engaged, we asked the awesome couple to have the wedding in Kentucky where her roots are, where her father and I could give her away properly. They agreed to the plan, and we went to work to give them the wedding of their dreams. Our sweet daughter is a Kentucky southern belle living a Georgia Peach life now, and we’re delighted to have a new son-in-law. We’ll likely be making a few trips south each year to visit with them.

  Though not all of the books in this series may have mystery, some of them will. I’ve always been fascinated with books which include suspense, adventure, humor, mishaps, romance, and the occasional mystery. Authors like Mary Higgins Clark, Agatha Christie, Ann B. Ross, and more have entertained us over the years. Truth and justice prevail, and these writers have often woven a tale of romance into the storyline. I loved the Nancy Drew stories, the Hardy Boys, and enjoyed watching Colombo and Perry Mason solve all sorts of crimes and mysteries.

  All of these things inspired me. I dreamt of a series with brides who would become engaged or have a wedding in Georgia. Who doesn’t love Georgia? The best peaches in the country are grown there, and of course, it’s the home of our beloved author, Margaret Mitchell, author of Gone with the Wind. There is much Civil War history in the state, and amazing plantation homes still stand tall and proud from the era. Some of these books may have a bit of mystery or suspense, and others might have a storyline filled with romantic adventures, and perhaps you’ll find a Cinderella tale or even a baseball story. In any case, the ten authors writing in this series plan to include faith, inspiration, and write the story the Lord lays on their hearts. We hope you are blessed by each one and enjoy them all as we journey to Georgia for some romance and maybe a bit of intrigue along the way.

  Look for future books in this series written by these talented authors—:

  Marlene Bierworth

  Tina Dee

  Tanya Eavenson

  Nina Jayne, pen name of Patricia PacJac Carroll

  Jo Noelle

  Elaine Manders

  Danni Roan

  Rachel Skatvold

  Laura Walker

  Thank you, readers, for taking this journey with us. May it bless you richly, filling you with wonder and awe at the beauty of our Savior.

  Warm Regards,

  Lisa M. Prysock

  Book Cover

  Book Description

  When Ms. Pepper Anne Barrington isn’t driving her convertible Aston Martin or writing her bestselling mysteries, she’s busy solving real-life dilemmas happening to her three grown children or the guests visiting her Atlanta bed and breakfast, Edgewater Coventry B & B. It seems to Miss Pepper, there’s always an air of romance, mystery, and perhaps a little adventure and mayhem at the restored 19th century plantation.

  When handsome handyman and popular up and coming musician, Bradley Fielding, inherits his grandmother’s Victorian estate in Georgia, he relocates his band from Nashville to Atlanta to oversee the renovations. He decides to stay at the Edgewater Coventry B & B while the Fielding house that has been in his family for generations is being remodeled. All kinds of things begin to go wrong, including the disappearance of his sister and an antique pocket watch.

  Patricia Johnston, avid reader and administrative assistant to Miss Pepper, is perhaps the most disturbed of all when she is framed for stealing Brad Fielding’s antique watch. She’s off to the wrong start in her new job—and with one of the country’s most eligible bachelors.

  Don’t miss the adventure, romance, and sometimes mystery in A Persevering Heart, Book 1 of the new, exciting Christian and inspirational series, ‘Georgia Peaches,’ where each novella ends with a happily ever after in spite of a number of obstacles.

  Dedication

  For my daughter, Courtney Nicole. She’s our Kentucky southern belle and a Georgia Peach. We love you so much. May you always persevere and succeed with God at your side. May your marriage be a lifetime of love, laughter, joy, contentment, purpose, and peace. Like Brother Paul says, you two will succeed where others have failed. Don’t ever forget that. We love you so much. Stay close to Jesus, but even as I write those words, I know I don’t need to remind you. You are such a beautiful and wonderful daughter. Always remember your roots. We are so proud of the woman you’ve become. I’ve poured everything I can into you, and you’re one of my greatest joys in life. Of course I love all three of my children the same, but when He gave me you, the Lord knew and
knoweth my world wouldn’t be right without you in it. With all my love,

  Mom

  Acknowledgments

  A big thank you up front to the Lord Jesus for allowing me to write for Him first and foremost.

  Tremendously good stuff happens when ten amazing authors get together! Thank you to all of the authors writing alongside me—: Danni, Elaine, Jo, Laura, Marlene, Patricia, Rachel, Tanya, and Tina. Please notice I alphabetized your names because you’re all so awesome for joining this series and helping me to define the vision for it, and then making it happen.

  Thank you to my editors, Rachel Skatvold and Tina Caudill Conder. Thank you to the most amazing cover artist, Virginia McKevitt. You all help bring my books to life.

  Thank you so much to the beta-readers who spend many hours reading my books and helping me launch them, usually before they hit the market. Your feedback is so valuable.

  Thank you to all of the readers who purchase my books, share about them, and cheer me on. You’re the ones we pour out our hearts to as authors. Thank you for seeing the best in our work.

  Thank you to JoAnn, Harriet, Hallee, Crystal and so many others who have shown me the ropes. May the Lord bless your richly.

  Thank you to my family for allowing me the freedom to do what I do, and for picking up the slack when I’m not able to get away from my writing desk.

  Georgia Peaches

  A Persevering Heart

  Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.

  Romans 12:12, NIV

  Lisa M. Prysock

  Chapter 1

  ...Being strengthened with all power according to His glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, and giving joyful thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of his holy people in the Kingdom of light. Colossians 1:11-12

  MISS PEPPER ANNE BARRINGTON gripped the steering wheel of her vintage, red Aston Martin convertible as she pointed the remote at the iron gates to her property. She pressed a button and then attempted to wait patiently while the iron gates opened. She tucked a stray lock of her brown wavy hair back into her messy bun. Waiting was easier said than done. Her feet hurt from running errands, and she had a lot on her mind. She intended to drop off the groceries in the kitchen and curl up on the chaise lounge in her private quarters with a book and an iced mocha. Never mind that she had a deadline for a book to write. Writing could wait. It was the weekend, after all.

  Normally, she enjoyed driving around with the top down, her hair and shoulders bathed in the spring sunshine, but she’d finished her errands and still hadn’t been able to figure out the mystery surrounding that pocket watch. The problem had preoccupied her thoughts all morning.

  Pepper noticed the lawn had been freshly mowed and a few more of the shrubs trimmed as the gates finished swinging open. She stepped on the gas and drove up the winding drive that went straight ahead for a bit before curving to the left as it passed the grand plantation house. The car purred like a kitten as it tackled the slight incline and curves bringing her closer to the house. The 1939 convertible had been fully restored with a souped up engine, air conditioning, and all of the latest electronics money could buy—including one of those fancy navigation devices. It was one of the items her husband had purchased for her as a gift after one of his booming months as a realtor, some years before he’d passed away.

  As she passed the big plantation house she and Wyatt had bought together and came near the end of the drive, it curved right and then straightened out toward the port-cochère leading into a courtyard. Once she drove beneath the covered archway, she could park in the garage straight ahead, or the one to the left. She normally parked straight ahead beside her black cherry Land Rover and her sparkling baby blue BMW, which was parked beside her Rolls Royce, leaving several spaces open for some of the plantation guests. Wyatt would be proud of how well the bed and breakfast was doing if he were alive to see it. She figured he might be looking down on the property and their three grown children from heaven.

  Pepper climbed out of the sports car and groaned as she rose to her feet. Maybe owning a car that low to the ground wasn’t such a great idea now that she’d turned forty-eight. However, she’d never be able to part with the gift. She loved Wyatt too much, and even though he’d passed on to glory, keeping his gifts was one way to honor the memory of their marriage and the life they’d built together. He’d left her a sizeable insurance policy and an estate worth millions. She’d never need to worry about money again since he’d made sure she was provided for. He’d been one of the most successful realtors in Atlanta until the car accident nine years ago.

  She flipped the switch on the driver’s door to open the trunk. Reaching inside, she picked up the groceries and her other packages. Thankfully, Theodore appeared to assist with the unloading process and she handed him half of her packages.

  “I’m glad to see you, Theo. You came at the right time.” She smiled at him as he rearranged a few of the bags now in his arms.

  He nodded, an appreciative look appearing in his blue eyes beneath his white hair. “I try to help as much as possible, ma’am.” Theo was a wonderful employee. Not only did he tend the landscaping, but he could also be counted on to drive her around in the Rolls, or repair things in a bind when her handyman was unavailable.

  They turned to go inside the magnificent house, walking beneath a smaller arch leading to steps going up to the rear “L-shaped” veranda running along the courtyard. They followed the veranda, turning left before finding the kitchen, a few doors down on the right. She didn’t mind that it was a long walk. Walking happened to be one of her favorite exercises.

  After Theo placed the groceries on the island, she turned to thank him. “Thanks again for helping me bring in the groceries. They had a sale on everything today. The lawn looks really nice, by the way.”

  Old school, he smiled and tipped his baseball hat. “You’re welcome, Miss Pepper. I’ll get back to tending the roses if you don’t need anything else.”

  “Certainly,” she replied, nodding as Mrs. Esther Parnell, her loyal cook who’d been employed with her more than fifteen years, took over with putting away the contents of the items she’d added to Pepper’s list.

  “I made some vegetable beef and barley soup for whenever you two are hungry,” Esther commented. They were already surveying the wonderful smell of the fresh-baked soda bread and the amazing soup.

  “I’ll have some soon as I’m done with the roses. This is the perfect time of year to fertilize,” Theo explained. “It smells great and I’ve worked up an appetite. I won’t be long.”

  “Thank you. I think I’ll have some on a tray in my room,” Pepper agreed. “If anyone needs me, can you tell them I’m taking the rest of the day off?”

  “Sure thing. I’ll fix something right up for you, Ms. Barrington. Then I’ll be heading home for the weekend, but there’s a large roast in the fridge ready to pop in the oven for tomorrow. I know most of our guests eat out on Sundays, but if there’s any leftover, we’ll turn it into roast beef tips with gravy over egg noodles on Monday. I’ll serve it with some buttermilk biscuits and fried okra.” Esther began preparing a tray with some of the soda bread and a big bowl of the soup that smelled like heaven. The recipe had been one of Wyatt’s favorites, handed down from his mother.

  “That sounds delicious. Thanks, Esther.” Then Pepper added, hearing her housekeeper, Annette Rogers, running the vacuum somewhere on the first floor, “I don’t know what I’d do without you all, and especially your wonderful cooking.”

  “You’d starve is what! All those long hours you put into writing those wonderful mysteries...you’d perish and waste away into nothing!” Esther declared.

  Pepper laughed. “I know you speak truth.”

  While the cook set about making her an iced mocha without being asked, Pepper couldn’t help but think about how the good Lord had brought her through such a challenging time of losing the love of her life. When
Wyatt had passed away, Warren, her oldest, had been eighteen. Wesley had been sixteen, and Krista, fourteen. They’d all taken it hard. Now they were grown and leading their own lives. Warren had become a realtor like his father. Wesley was now an officer at the police station serving their very own neighborhood, and Krista, a new elementary teacher right out of college. She worked at a private Christian school less than ten minutes away. Pepper couldn’t have been more proud of them, and she took comfort knowing her grown chickadees were employed locally and all lived at home, except for Warren. The good Lord had seen to that, in her opinion.

  Wyatt had been a wonderful father and a faithful, loving husband. Other than being somewhat of a workaholic, she couldn’t complain about her Wyatt. They’d purchased the plantation and the ten acres it was sitting on when the kids had been in elementary school. When he hadn’t been working like crazy to close another real estate deal, they’d worked together to remodel the place, turning it into an amazing bed and breakfast. She’d given up her teaching job to be a full-time mother and wife, a decision she’d never regretted. They’d named their home Edgewater Coventry B & B. With its four stately pillars, the mansion and property looked like something out of a dream, or maybe one of those southern house and yard decorating magazines.

  Stepping outside the kitchen and back onto the veranda, Pepper turned right toward her personal suite at the end of the wing, only two doors down. With a sigh of relief, she carried her tray of soup, bread, and the iced mocha Esther had remembered to make exactly the way she liked it, with a dollop of whipped cream and a little caramel and chocolate syrup drizzled on top. Her errands done for the day, she was in no mood for writing. Instead, she was anxious to relax and push all thoughts of the stolen and then returned antique watch from her mind.