Autumn's Awakening. Irene Brand

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      As Autumn watched Nathan take charge, she compared him to what he’d been when they’d first met.

      Then, he’d been less sure of himself. Now he was strong, assured and capable. His eyes met hers and held for a few brief moments. As if he could read her thoughts, he started toward her, paused and turned away.

      To hide her confusion, Autumn got some medication for the injured horse.

      “You’ve done a good job on this, Autumn. Having the courage to admit you lack expertise in this situation probably saved the horse for a productive future. You’ve done a great job, in my opinion.”

      Dropping her gaze, she said, “Thanks. Your opinion is important to me.”

      He ignored the children nearby, who looked on with interest, and drew her into his arms.

      IRENE BRAND

      This prolific and popular author of both contemporary and historical inspirational fiction is a native of West Virginia, where she has lived all her life. She began writing professionally in 1977, after she completed her master’s degree in history at Marshall University. Irene taught in secondary public schools for twenty-three years, but retired in 1989 to devote herself full-time to her writing.

      In 1984, after she had enjoyed a long career of publishing articles and devotional materials, her first novel was published by Thomas Nelson. Since that time, Irene has published twenty-one contemporary and historical novels and three nonfiction titles with publishers such as Zondervan, Fleming Revell and Barbour Books.

      Her extensive travels with her husband, Rod, to forty-nine of the United States and thirty-two foreign countries, have inspired much of her writing. Through her writing, Irene believes she has been helpful to others and is grateful to the many readers who have written to say that her truly inspiring stories and compelling portrayals of characters of strong faith have made a positive impression on their lives. You can write to her at P.O. Box 2770, Southside, WV 25187.

      Autumn’s Awakening

      Irene Brand

      

www.millsandboon.co.uk

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      Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the

       altar and there remember that your brother has

       something against you, leave your gift there in

       front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to

       your brother; then come and offer your gift.

      —Matthew 5:23-24

      With special thanks to

       Bill Crank, DVM (a former “A” student in my

       United States history class), and his staff at the

       Animal Hospital, West Virginia, for their help

      and

      Jim and Jackie Kessinger,

       owners of Green Valley Farm, Ohio,

       and their Belgian draft horses

       that provided the inspiration for this book

      Dear Reader,

      The underlying theme of this book is forgiveness, and during the writing I gave a lot of thought to the subject. As my characters wrestled with their need to forgive and be forgiven, I considered the wonderful news of God’s grace and how willing He is to forgive our sins. Perhaps the hardest words for anyone to say are “I was wrong,” and/or “I’m sorry.” However, before the cleansing power of forgiveness can transform our lives, we must be sincerely sorry for our sins, whether they’ve been committed against others or against God.

      We often seek forgiveness from others by doing things for them—giving them something, as in the case of Landon when he gave Nathan a filly to replace the one he’d lost. The Bible teaches that it is sometimes necessary to make a tangible restitution to those we’ve wronged (Luke 19:1-10). Yet there’s absolutely nothing we can do to receive God’s mercy.

      Consider a verse from the writings of the apostle Paul. “But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved” (Ephesians 2:4-5). If you have not yet received the grace of God into your heart, I pray that this book will point you to Jesus, and His power to forgive.

      My next Love Inspired book will continue the Weaver tradition through Summer Weaver, a sister to the heroine in this book. If you want to contact me, my address is: Irene B. Brand, P.O. Box 2770, Southside, WV 25187.

      Contents

      Prologue

      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

      Chapter Nineteen

      Epilogue

      Prologue

      When daylight filtered through the open window, Autumn Weaver slipped out of bed, dressed hurriedly and walked quietly down the stairs of her family’s Victorian farm home. She laid a restraining hand on the head of Spots, her border collie, when he rushed to greet her as she stepped out on the back porch. The white barn, housing her father’s prize-winning Belgian horses, was barely visible through the layer of dense fog hovering over Indian Creek Farm in central Ohio.

      Autumn hurried into the barn, stroking the long faces of the huge draft horses as she made her way slowly to the tack room. She heard Nathan walking around in his upstairs apartment, and she waited breathlessly until his footsteps came nearer. Nathan picked up a couple of halters before he saw her standing in the doorway.

      “What are you doing here?” he demanded.

      “I wanted to see you.”

      He brushed by her into the main passageway of the large barn. She stopped him by placing a hand on his arm.

      “After your date with Dr. Lowe last night, I didn’t think