Everand Logo

Welcome to Everand!

  • Discover millions of ebooks, audiobooks, and so much more with a free trial

    Only $11.99/month after trial. Cancel anytime.

    Intrigue a la Mode (A Harvey House Brides Novella)
    Intrigue a la Mode (A Harvey House Brides Novella)
    Intrigue a la Mode (A Harvey House Brides Novella)
    Ebook109 pages1 hour

    Intrigue a la Mode (A Harvey House Brides Novella)

    By Regina Jennings

    4.5/5

    ()

    Read preview

    About this ebook

    Willow finds herself drawn to the hotel's new busboy, Graham, but little does she know he's a railroad heir working undercover to track down criminals using his trains. As he sets out to find the truth, another truth soon becomes equally urgent--will the Harvey Girl he has come to love care for the railroad heir as much as she cared for the lowly busboy?
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherBaker Publishing Group
    Release dateMar 31, 2020
    ISBN9781493417131
    Intrigue a la Mode (A Harvey House Brides Novella)

    Read more from Regina Jennings

    Related to Intrigue a la Mode (A Harvey House Brides Novella)

    Related ebooks

    Christian Fiction For You

    View More
    View More

    Related podcast episodes

    Related articles

    • Article

      Best Of The Best

      Oct 29, 2022

      Best Of The Best
      8 min read

    • Article

      The LittleTHINGS

      Jul 5, 2022

      The LittleTHINGS
      6 min read

    • Article

      Echoes

      Jun 29, 2022

      Echoes
      9 min read

    • Article

      The Education of Mrs. R.

      Sep 6, 2022

      An adolescent shriek woke her. Cockerels, she thought, cockerels, with a wry twist to the word. She lay in the dark listening. There was no use in covering her head; the screaming still came through. The soloist was suddenly submerged in the chorus.

      13 min read

    • Article

      Stay and Fight

      Jul 9, 2019

      Stay and Fight
      16 min read

    • Article

      Echoes

      Jul 13, 2022

      Echoes
      9 min read

    • Article

      PARTING the Veil

      Oct 21, 2020

      PARTING the Veil
      3 min read

    • Article

      A Mother’s Intuition

      Dec 28, 2022

      A Mother’s Intuition
      7 min read

    • Article

      O Fortuna, Velut Luna

      Sep 15, 2018

      What is Miss Treece’s trouble, according to a popular notion? The man A has failed to show up. Arousing herself at the restaurant, she fixes her lipstick when her solo supper concludes and takes herself down the stairs situated behind the bar. There,

      3 min read

    • Article

      A Mother’s Intuition

      Dec 28, 2022

      A Mother’s Intuition
      7 min read

    • Article

      Human Contact

      Aug 10, 2022

      Beer tasted like wet money—or maybe just bad beer did. Viola had never tried any other kind. She preferred white wine, but there was no white wine at this party. “Drink it like medicine,” the guy manning the keg said. “It’ll loosen you up.” He wore a

      18 min read

    • Article

      Echoes

      Jul 6, 2022

      Echoes
      9 min read

    • Article

      The Perfect CHRISTMAS

      Nov 25, 2020

      The Perfect CHRISTMAS
      6 min read

    • Article

      The Buffet

      Oct 7, 2021

      The Buffet
      6 min read

    • Article

      Cupboard LOVE

      Jul 26, 2023

      Cupboard LOVE
      6 min read

    • Article

      The Traveler Part 1

      Sep 1, 2020

      Jamie wandered aimlessly, kicking a broken chunk of sidewalk, following the chip of cement as it skittered and bounced through leaves and off curbs. In a trance, she walked down unknown blocks and around unfamiliar corners, her mind so far away that

      9 min read

    • Article

      Carrot Legs

      Sep 12, 2019

      Carrot Legs
      20 min read

    • Article

      Echoes

      Jun 22, 2022

      Echoes
      9 min read

    • Article

      Benzo Mama

      Sep 7, 2021

      Benzo Mama
      30 min read

    • Article

      “She’s Losing It”: An Excerpt from ‘The Autodidacts’

      Oct 10, 2022

      "She stares at the Walkman, assumes an attitude of prayer, makes a wager, presses play." The post “She’s Losing It”: An Excerpt from ‘The Autodidacts’ appeared first on The Millions.

      2 min read

    • Article

      The Troll Hat

      Jul 3, 2019

      The Troll Hat
      3 min read

    • Article

      My Country Childhood

      Sep 4, 2019

      AUTHOR AND FORMER executive director of the Australian Writers Guild, Angela Wales, 71, moved from Bondi in Sydney to Walcha in the Northern Tablelands of NSW when she was five years old. Angela’s father, Bob, was to take over a struggling sheep prop

      7 min read

    • Article

      Tilly’s Lost Girls

      Sep 28, 2020

      Eeh, Ma, this Blackpool wind would blow you to kingdom come if you gave it half a chance.” Tilly looked up from where she sat next to the counter of her basketwear shop, weaving the last strands of the project she was working on. She smiled as she sa

      6 min read

    • Article

      Heatstroke

      Jun 8, 2020

      Languid. The word that formed in Rachel’s mind was languid. The figure on the lawn was languid. Its limbs were loose, its joints fluid. Its hands and feet seemed too heavy for the bones that held them. It was draped over the sun lounger, dripping fro

      5 min read

    • Article

      A Nest Of VIPERS

      Feb 8, 2023

      A Nest Of VIPERS
      9 min read

    • Article

      Cricket Ceague

      Apr 1, 2019

      Penelope Berkeley, age 9 Mars Hill, NC Night had fallen, and Luna awoke from where she had been sleeping in a cornfield. She moved steadily through the stalks with barely a sound, keeping her eyes on the glittering glass rooftop of the greenhouse in

      7 min read

    • Article

      The BRACELET

      Jan 30, 2024

      The BRACELET
      6 min read

    • Article

      Women Sweeping

      Mar 15, 2022

      The woman in Édouard Vuillard’s Woman Sweeping, painted between 1899 and 1900, is Marie Michaud Vuillard, the painter’s mother. She is tall and stocky, her posture—that slight give of the back to the broom, without bending—marking a nonchalant style

      25 min read

    • Article

      The Bees Are Coming

      Aug 4, 2022

      The Bees Are Coming
      7 min read

    Related categories

    Reviews for Intrigue a la Mode (A Harvey House Brides Novella)

    4.5/5

    9 ratings0 reviews

    What did you think?

    Tap to rate

    Review must be at least 10 words

      Book preview

      Intrigue a la Mode (A Harvey House Brides Novella) - Regina Jennings

      Books by Regina Jennings

      LADIES OF CALDWELL COUNTY

      Sixty Acres and a Bride

      Love in the Balance

      Caught in the Middle

      OZARK MOUNTAIN ROMANCE SERIES

      A Most Inconvenient Marriage

      At Love’s Bidding

      For the Record

      THE FORT RENO SERIES

      Holding the Fort

      The Lieutenant’s Bargain

      The Major’s Daughter

      An Unforeseen Match

      featured in the novella collection A Match Made in Texas

      Her Dearly Unintended

      featured in the novella collection With This Ring?

      Bound and Determined

      featured in the novella collection Hearts Entwined

      Intrigue a la Mode

      featured in the novella collection Serving Up Love

      © 2019 by Regina Jennings

      Published by Bethany House Publishers

      11400 Hampshire Avenue South

      Bloomington, Minnesota 55438

      www.bethanyhouse.com

      Bethany House Publishers is a division of

      Baker Publishing Group, Grand Rapids, Michigan

      www.bakerpublishinggroup.com

      Ebook edition created 2020

      All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means—for example, electronic, photocopy, recording—without the prior written permission of the publisher. The only exception is brief quotations in printed reviews.

      Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data for Serving Up Love is on file at the Library of Congress, Washington, DC.

      ISBN 978-1-4934-1713-1

      Scripture quotations are from the King James Version of the Bible.

      This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, incidents, and dialogues are products of the author’s imagination and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

      Cover design by Koechel Peterson & Associates, Inc., Minneapolis, Minnesota/Jon Godfredson

      Contents

      Cover

      Books by Regina Jennings

      Title Page

      Copyright Page

      1

      2

      3

      4

      5

      6

      7

      8

      9

      10

      Epilogue

      Coming December 2020

      About the Author

      Back Ads

      Chapter One

      EMPORIA, KANSAS

      1898

      The breakfast rush had ended, and Willow Kentworth had already reset her station. There was nothing to do now except patrol her table and guard against horseflies dying on the starched tablecloth or lilies wilting in the crystal vase. Raised in a household of shabby gentility, Willow wasn’t used to such finery. She knew that linens and silver weren’t needed for a good meal. The tattered cushions on the chairs at her mother’s kitchen table in Joplin were more comfortable than the polished mahogany in the Harvey House dining room. The honeysuckle from their garden wall smelled sweeter than the lilies.

      Willow felt her crooked smile emerging as she repositioned a glass. Sour grapes, that was what she was tasting. As if she’d ever have mahogany chairs and china plates. It was just as well to decide now that she didn’t need them, she reckoned. No use in cultivating envy, Granny Laura would say to her and her innumerable cousins. Still, her job was important. Controlling every aspect of her table ensured that she kept her job and that her family would get another wire of funds from her. The bread box would be filled, and Mother would get the medicine she needed.

      Reaching behind her, Willow felt for the double buttons at the back of her apron, making sure they were still securely fastened. Her puffy sleeves accentuated her slender waist, so she fluffed them once more. Dressed in her Harvey House uniform, she didn’t have to apologize for the state of her wardrobe. When she put on the uniform, she was only judged by her performance, and no one could fault her there.

      Stop preening, Willow. Etta Mae scurried by while adjusting the hairnet that held her thick braids. You look perfect.

      No one could fault her besides Etta Mae.

      Before Willow could answer, the booming sound of a wooden mallet on bronze set the room abuzz. Outside, a busboy was beating the daylights out of the poor gong. Four miles away. That was how much time they had before the train arrived. Time Willow didn’t need, but one could never be too careful when trying to uphold the Harvey Standard.

      A telegraph had arrived with news of the next train—thirty-eight passengers for the dining room and eighteen for the lunch counter. On cue, plates of fresh fruit appeared on the serving counter, already counted for the expected guests.

      Willow weaved between tables to reach them. Taking two plates at a time, she glided effortlessly in the manner she had learned at the Kansas City employment office. Placing the fruit plates on the table, she frowned at a water spot on a salad fork, but when she rubbed it, she realized it was only the reflection of the crystal glass that had caught her eye.

      Excuse me, ladies. Mrs. Sykes’s dulcet voice floated across the dining room, stopping every girl in her tracks. Remember, we only have twenty minutes to serve our guests. In that time, their experience must be perfect. Whatever cares and concerns you have are of no importance now. The only thing that matters is your customer. Make this moment the best moment of their journey.

      Willow fought the urge to smooth back her blond hair. Mrs. Sykes, proudly wearing the black gown of the head waitress, gave some variation of the same speech every meal, and every meal Willow did her best to conform to the Harvey Standard. Whatever new regulations Mrs. Sykes could invent, Willow could match. It was a source of pride for her.

      The roar of the train came through the heavy drapes as she carried her last fruit plates to the table. Taking her place against the wall, Willow clasped her hands in front of her and smiled serenely. From the chandeliers to the crystal goblets, the room sparkled. The smell of roasted, milk-fed chicken meant that the main course would soon be on the plates. Everything was ready.

      And then the people came.

      As usual, the girls in the back of the room offered the first greetings to draw the crowds farther in, keeping the front seats for the latecomers. Willow stayed against the wall until the appropriate number of travelers had passed, and then stepped forward to offer them seats at her table. She took account of her guests, trying to predict what special requests they might have. A young mother pulled out a chair for her little son before collapsing into her own with a baby on her lap. Extra napkins. Willow would bring some on her next pass.

      An elderly couple took two seats, but they seemed to be strangers to the mother. Two professional men and a young couple finished out her table.

      Tea, iced tea, coffee, or milk? Willow asked.

      Iced tea for me, please, the mother said. A cup of milk for him and, if you don’t mind, could I get some milk in the baby bottle? He just emptied it, but we’ll need more for the trip.

      Yes, ma’am. Willow took the glass bottle after the mother had removed the nipple, then continued around the table, moving the goblets into the correct positions. The location of the glass told Billie, the other waitress at her table, what drink to fill it with—another of Mr. Harvey’s wondrous time-saving techniques. Once she’d finished positioning the glasses, Willow waited with the empty bottle until Billie had finished filling the glasses on the table.

      Can you get this before you put the milk back? she whispered.

      Billie snatched the bottle with a nod. Don’t want a fussy baby. It’ll disrupt the whole table.

      Stop it. The mother reached under the table to squeeze the leg of her son while the baby dangled half off her lap. You’re rattling the table. She rolled her eyes at Willow. "I probably should’ve let him

      Enjoying the preview?
      Page 1 of 1