Welcome back, Regina
So that I could justify all the time I spent reading,
daydreaming, and doing research.
If you weren’t an
author, what would be your dream job?
Something to do with numbers and money. I like to balance
spreadsheets and manage assets.
If you could have
lived at another time in history, what would it be and why?
I’d love to be present at one of the Oklahoma Land Runs. I
can’t imagine the excitement and energy before the gun went off. But as soon as
the land is settled, then I’d transport to another time and place that’s
already civilized so I don’t have to build everything from the dirt up.
I’ve been interested
in the Land Runs, too. What place in the United States
How about a foreign
country you hope to visit?
What lesson has the
Lord taught you recently?
That if it’s important enough for me to tell someone else,
it’s important enough to tell Him. In fact, I should talk to the Lord about
something before I share with friends so that I’ve had time to think about
whether it’s something I should share or not.
A very good, and
hard, lesson to learn. Tell us about the featured book.
Holding the Fort lands close to home for me, just about twenty
miles down the road at Fort
Reno Indian Territory
and straighten him out.
Major Daniel Adams is said commander who has his hands full
with his rowdy troopers, not to mention his two adolescent daughters. If he
doesn’t find someone respectable to guide his children, his mother-in-law
insists she’ll take them.
So when Louisa arrives with some reading materials that a
nice lady asked her to deliver, she’s mistaken for the governess who never
appeared. Daniel is skeptical. He requested someone older and less…lively….but
he’s out of options. His mother-in-law must be satisfied, which leaves him
turning a blind eye to his unconventional governess’s methods. Louisa’s never
faced so importance a performance. Can she keep her act together long enough to
help her brother, or will her mistakes ruin everything?
Sounds like my kind
of story. Please give us the first page of the book.
June 1885
The fumes of the gaslights at the foot of the stage
protected Louisa Bell from the more noxious odors of her audience. On hot
nights like tonight, the scent of the unwashed bodies in the Cat-Eye Saloon
could be overwhelming. Braving a deep breath, Louisa placed her hand delicately
against her beribboned Polonaise and crescendoed her way into the next stanza.
She lifted her head and sang to the rafters so she didn’t have to meet the eyes
of the overly-interested, overly-intoxicated, overly-male audience. Their
approval meant that she had a place to live and food to eat. And while she knew
that performing on stage carried certain undesirable associations, it was the
only path open to her.
She held the final note while Charlie resolved the chord on
the piano. The applause exploded immediately. Whistles and hoots filled the
air.
“That was dandy, Lovely Lola.” Slappy flopped his loose
hands together in appreciation.
“Lovely Lola, will you marry me?” She didn’t know his name,
but the cowboy was there every summer when the cattle made it up the trail.
“You’re an angel,” Rawbone cried.
Louisa might not be the youngest, most coquettish performer,
but the purity and emotion of her voice couldn’t be denied. She curtsied
elegantly, holding the flounced skirt to the side. Cimarron Ted held up a glass
to toast her. She could return his smile without worry as she prepared for her
last song of the night. Charlie started the intro on the piano, and Louisa
mentally rehearsed her pre-song recital.
I am Lovely Lola Bell, she told herself. They will be
enchanted by my performance and will love my show.
She caught movement out of the corner of her eye. It was
Tim-Bob, the owner of the Cat-Eye Saloon. With his hand wrapped firmly around
Persephone’s white, shapely arm, he was marching through the stage curtains and
onto the stage, right in the middle of Louisa’s nightly performance.
“Hey, Charlie,” Tim-Bob called. “Cut off that music. I have
an announcement to make.”
The pianist wasted no time in stopping and taking a swig
from his bottle. The crowd wasn’t as quick to simmer down.
“Let Lovely Lola sing!” a man hollered.
“It’s Saturday night! Can’t have Saturday night without
Lovely Lola.”
Whatever was going on, Louisa wished it didn’t have to
happen in front of the rowdy mob. Persephone showed promise as a performer on
Tuesday nights—that was Louisa’s night off—but she showed more promise as the
next lady love of Tim-Bob’s So, why was she here now?
What a hook! I wish
my copy was here now so I could start reading it today. How can readers find
you on the Internet?
Yes, please find me on the internet! I love to hear from
readers at my website - www.reginajennings.com
and on Facebook, Twitter or Pinterest.
Thank you, Regina
Readers, here are links to the book.
Holding the Fort - Christianbook.comHolding the Fort (The Fort Reno Series)
- Amazon paperbackHolding the Fort (The Fort Reno Series Book 1) - Kindle
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