Everything His Heart Desires,

Small-town Romance by Patricia Preston

 

 

Are you looking for a crowd-pleaser for the holidays? Why not try Patricia Preston's Banana Pudding? Then curl up with her small-town romance.

Welcome, Patricia! Tell us about Everything His Heart Desires.

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In Everything His Heart Desires, Natalie and Brett are enemies-to-lovers who went to high school together. Natalie dumped a bowl of runny banana pudding on Brett’s head during a food fight in the cafeteria. Years later, when the story begins, Natalie has her aunt Clara make a banana pudding for their dinner guest, Brett, who hasn’t eaten banana pudding since the food fight.

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My recipe is for old-fashioned banana pudding, which my mother used to make banana pudding. Everything His Heart Desires takes place during the Thanksgiving/Christmas holiday season. Banana pudding would make a great dessert for Christmas dinner.

As I write this, I wonder if I have a banana? I can cut the recipe down and make a small pudding…LOL!!!

 

OLD-FASHION BANANA PUDDING

Ingredients

Vanilla wafers

Banana

½ cup sugar (you can add more when cooking if you want a sweeter pudding)

1/8 cup plus a tablespoon of flour

1 cup milk

2 egg yolks

1 tsp butter

1 tsp vanilla extract

 

Optional Meringue

2 egg whites

¼ cup sugar

½ tsp vanilla

1/4 tsp cream of tartar if desired

Eggs: Separate the yolks from the white. Set aside the egg whites for the meringue.

Put a saucepan on the stove, lower the heat, and melt the butter in it.

Mix flour and sugar. Add ½ cup milk to the flour and sugar. Mix. Pour into the saucepan with the melted butter. Use a fork to blend egg yolks. Add to pudding mix and whisk. Add the remaining milk to the pudding. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly. After a few minutes, the pudding will thicken. Note: you can add more flour to make the pudding thicker, more milk to make it thinner, and more sugar to make it sweeter if you want.

 Remove from heat and add vanilla extract. Whisk. Cover the bottom of the baking dish with vanilla wafers. Use as many or as little as you like. Next layer the banana slices on top of the wafers.

While your pudding mix is hot, pour over bananas and wafers.

Meringue:

Note: This is an optional topping but it’s required if you want the old-fashioned pudding.

Put egg whites, vanilla, and cream of tartar in a large mixer bowl. Mix. (You can make it with just egg whites and sugar) Use the electric mixer on the highest speed and gradually add sugar about a tablespoon at a time. Whites should foam and then start to get fluffy. When it forms peaks, the meringue is ready. 

You can circle the baking dish with vanilla wafers. Then cover the top of the pudding with the meringue. Put it in the oven to brown the peaks of meringue for about 8 minutes. Be sure to check frequently so as to not overcook it. Remove it from the oven when the peaks are light golden brown. Set aside to cool and enjoy!

Everything His Heart Desires, a Lafayette Falls romance, Book One.

I loved writing about Natalie and Brett. I’ve worked in the medical field for several years, so I decided Brett would be a doctor. I chose photography for Natalie because I love photography and graphic design. Also, I’ve always been fascinated by a turn-of-the-century house in my hometown with Romanesque architecture featuring towers like a castle. That house sorta inspired the Castle House in the book, which is where Natalie and her family live. I especially enjoyed creating her grandmother, Anna Layton, her thug cat, Pharaoh, and Anna’s sister, Clara. I love humor in a book, and Anna and Clara were so much fun.

Blurb:

In Lafayette Falls, Senator Layton’s daughter, Natalie, charmed everyone in high school except Brett “Hot Rod” Harris. Growing up poor on Trinity Road only fueled Brett’s ambition. He dismissed Natalie as a slacker whose saving grace was her family’s fortune and the one girl who was beyond his reach.

 Home for the holidays…After years of working in war zones, widowed photographer Natalie Layton returns home with a battered soul. She’s happy to reconnect with her family. Yet she didn’t foresee being roped into a scheme that involved win-or-die Brett Harris.

Now a cardiologist, Brett is handed the ultimate opportunity when the influential Layton family promises him a coveted position at the hospital in exchange for helping their ailing matriarch. The only catch? He’ll have to team up with Natalie to win over her pretentious grandmother.

 Brett is captivated by the complex woman Natalie has become. But can a guy from the wrong side of town win the love of a local princess? Natalie has always had a soft spot for Brett, but he’s driven to succeed. Is his interest in her just a ploy? In the end, will it be about ambition or can love defy the odds and rewrite the most unlikely of narratives?

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 The Lafayette Falls Romance Series is perfect for readers of mainstream romance novels who love a small-town romance vibe, sexy, charming characters, humor, and heartfelt connections in the community. They are written in third person, with multiple viewpoints. Heat level: warm/open door.

Excerpt from Chapter One

Brett tapped in his code on the keypad and walked into the physicians’ lounge, which was as deserted as the parking lot. Brett followed the aroma of freshly brewed coffee into the kitchenette, where his pal, pediatrician Aaron Kendall, sat on a stool, eating a bowl of cornflakes.

Dressed in blue scrubs, Aaron, a former college baseball player with soulful dark blue eyes and black hair, greeted him. “Hey. I’ve asked around, and no one knows anything about a meeting this morning.”

Brett frowned. “I can’t imagine what Sheldon wants.” An hour ago, he received a cryptic message from the chief of staff, Dr. Neal Sheldon.

Meet me at the hospital. Nine o’clock. Executive Conference Room.

The command was straightforward, without any explanation. Being who he was, Sheldon did not have to explain his orders. His authority was not questioned. Nevertheless, since Brett had gotten Sheldon’s message, his mind had been considering all the possibilities and coming up with nothing.

“Are you in trouble again?” Aaron asked.

“No.” After his last clash with Richard Lockett, the hospital’s current CEO, he had been reprimanded by the chief of staff. So, for four months, he had been the poster boy of professionalism, and Lockett was holed up in his office, dealing with cash flow deficits at the hospital.

Aaron gave him a thoughtful glance. “What about the chief of cardiology position?”

“You know I don’t have a chance.” Not that he didn’t want to be head of the cardiology department. He’d sell his soul for the position. That was how much he wanted it.

“You’re an interventional cardiologist, and you generate a lot of income for the hospital.”

“Doesn’t matter. It’s all politics.” More than once, the politics had gone against him. When it came to Lafayette Falls, he was from the “wrong side of town,” so to speak.

He’d grown up poor on Trinity Road, a strip of worn asphalt that snaked through the hills outside of town. Decades before Brett was born, Trinity Road had already established a dark reputation. The desolate road had once been home to a branch of the Dixie Mafia, and it was known for its roadhouses and violence. Nothing good ever comes from Trinity Road. The phrase had become Trinity Road’s legacy, and Brett had been trying to live that down all his life.

By all rights, a penniless kid from Trinity Road should have never even made it to college, much less medical school. The chief of cardiology position was beyond his grasp.

“I don’t know why Sheldon called this meeting. I don’t have any patient complaints against me I’m aware of.”

He tackled his work with a deep sense of seriousness and was exceptional at what he did.

Aaron finished his cereal. “If you get the chance, mention the chief of cardiology office to Sheldon. You’d do a great job.”

“The only way I will get it is if everyone else turns it down.” The position meant extra work, and the three other cardiologists on staff were older than Brett and had families on top of large practices. They might balk at more responsibility. “I think Foster will step up and take it.”

Dr. Roy Foster had been on the staff for over twenty years and was a better politician than Brett.

“Still, say something to Sheldon,” Aaron suggested. “Just see what his thoughts are.”

“He’d probably flatten me like a cockroach.” Brett glanced at the wall clock, which read eight forty-five. It never hurt to be early. “I’ll let you know what happens.”

“Good luck, bro.”

Brett strode down the blue-tiled hallway, thinking about the chief of cardiology position. Dr. Milam Collins had held onto the position for twenty-five years. For the past few years, Collins had been biding his time, preparing to retire. He had let things in the department slide.

Collins never insisted on the purchase of new equipment or upgrades to the cath lab. Brett found that frustrating but mediocre Collins was Lockett’s golfing buddy, and he had the support of the governing board of trustees and the medical staff. The good ole boy network dominated everything.

In the hallway, he passed a couple of lab techs. “Hey, Hot Rod,” they greeted him by his nickname. “TGIF!”

“You got that right,” Brett replied. Nothing compared to a Friday when it came to putting a little bounce in your step. He usually hung out on Friday nights at the Thunderbird Bar and Grill.

Last year, he had invested a wad of cash into the Thunderbird, which was paying off nicely, as well as some other investments. His portfolio grew fatter by the day.

As he approached the elevators at the end of the hall, the doors to one of the cars slid open, and he made a dash for it. He almost ran into Mrs. Rutherford, the hospital’s stodgy dietitian, who stepped out of the elevator.

“Doctor Harris, aren’t you energetic this morning?”

“It’s Friday, Mrs. Rutherford. Best day of the week!” Brett rushed into the elevator car as the doors started to close. The hospital elevator cars were built to accommodate stretchers and medical equipment, so they were roomy enough.

He nodded at an older Asian couple standing in the middle of the car. He stood before the operating panel and pressed seven, where the executive offices and meeting rooms were located. He settled in the front corner as the car shuddered and began its climb.

That’s when he noticed the hot chick standing in the rear corner of the elevator, diagonal from him. Gold hair cascaded over her shoulders, creating a mesmerizing S-curve that delicately framed her cheek. She wore a short burgundy jacket with embroidered lapels over a silky top and form-fitting jeans. Knee-high brown leather boots with stack heels added a touch of sophistication to her appearance.

She looked like she had just stepped out of a high-end Ralph Lauren fashion advertisement, radiating an aura of effortless cool and timeless class. With a grin, he thought she looked as if she belonged at a polo match, on a yacht, or in his bed.

She held a couple of large, white pastry boxes from the hospital cafeteria.

He impulsively checked out her hands. Delicate clear nails and no wedding band or engagement ring. He grinned. Maybe it’s my lucky day. Maybe a lucky weekend, too.

The elevator opened on the second floor, and the Asian couple got off. While the elevator was stopped, Brett moved to the rear of the car. So he and the Ralph Lauren model stood in opposite corners.

The elevator hydraulics sighed as the door closed. He cut his eyes in her direction. Classic bone structure. High cheekbones and a straight nose. You inherited some fantastic genes, babe.

She shifted the boxes she held and looked at him. Her bold sapphire-blue eyes pinned him with a gaze that would have fired up the pistons in any man. A tiny smile played at the corner of her lips. A girl giving a guy a hint of a smile was usually a good indicator that she liked what she saw.

He ignored the dicey feeling in his gut.

“I’ve heard we’re going to have great weather this weekend,” he remarked.

The weather was always a safe conversation starter. He tapped on the handrail. For the first time ever, he wished the elevator would move a little slower.

He saw a glimmer of amusement as her grin widened slightly. “There’s a storm coming.”

A storm? He frowned. He had watched the weather report on TV before he left his house. Sunny autumn weekend, high in the seventies, and no rain. “I don’t think so.”

“Oh, I’m fairly certain about the storm,” she insisted with a swift lowering of her lashes. Her sultry voice didn’t sound local. Suddenly, she flashed him a tempestuous smile. All the shyness was gone, and his knees felt weak.

He blinked. He wasn’t sure if she was talking about an actual storm or using the word as a metaphor—like for sex? If he were a Christmas tree, every light on him would be glowing. He raked back his unruly hair.

The elevator passed the fifth floor. With no time to spare, he decided to go for it.

He might have been born poor but not humble.

“I’m going to be at the Thunderbird tonight. Hanging out. If you’re out that way, stop by. I’d love to have some company.” He didn’t make a big deal of it. Subtlety had its merits.

He noticed a flicker of delight in her gorgeous blue eyes, and for a second, she seemed familiar. Like he’d seen her before. That wasn’t possible. He would not have forgotten a woman like her. Besides, he wasn’t one to ever get that drunk.

She kept smiling. Almost as if she couldn’t stop herself. That had to be a good sign.

“How about it?” He used a confident tone because he believed in self-assurance. “Meet me at the Thunderbird tonight?”

She wet her luscious lips, and his heart rate tripled.

“I wasn’t kidding about the storm,” she warned.

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Download a free 3-chapter sample at Bookfunnel  https://dl.bookfunnel.com/bm5uaqmz5d

The book is available at most ebook retailers and in print at Amazon.

For all retailer buy links: Books2Read  https://books2read.com/everythinghisheartdesires

Amazon Link https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CJL99YFB

Award-winning author, Patricia Preston, enjoys writing swoon-worthy mainstream romances with charming heroines and irresistible heroes. All her books, regardless of the subgenre, are traditional romances featuring an emotional and compelling romantic journey that will leave the reader smiling. Her awards include first place in the Lone Star Writing Competition for Historical Romance, Harlequin’s World’s Best Romances Short Story Competition, and the William Faulkner Award for Short Fiction. Many of her interests and favorites are often reflected in her books. She loves old homes, romantic décor, antiques, flea markets, history, music, graphic art, and cooking.

https://patriciaprestonauthor.com

 

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