Praise for the novels of
New York Times bestselling author SHERRYL WOODS
âWoods is a master heartstring puller.â
â Publishers Weekly on Seaview Inn
âCompulsively readableâ¦Though the serious issues raised are handled with honesty and integrity, Woodsâs novel easily rises above hot-button topics to tell a universal tale of friendshipâs redemptive power.â
â Publishers Weekly on Mending Fences
âRedolent with Southern small-town atmosphere, this emotionally rich story deals with some serious issues and delivers on a number of levels.â
â Library Journal on A Slice of Heaven
âSherryl Woods always delivers a fast, breezy, glamorous mix of romance and suspense.â
â New York Times bestselling author Jayne Ann Krentz
âWoodsâs latest entry in her Sweet Magnolias series (after Stealing Home ) is sure to please fans and entice new readers withâ¦flesh-and-blood characters, terrific dialogue and substantial stakes.â
â Publishers Weekly on A Slice of Heaven
âSherryl Woodsâ¦writes with a very special warmth, wit, charm and intelligence.â
â New York Times bestselling author Heather Graham
âSherryl Woods gives her characters depth, intensity, and the right amount of humor.â
â Romantic Times BOOKreviews
âSherryl Woods is a uniquely gifted writer whose deep understanding of human nature is woven into every page.â
â New York Times bestselling author Carla Neggers
Dear Friend,
Iâm so excited that the TRINITY HARBOR series is back in print. If you didnât have a chance to read it when it first came out, I hope youâll enjoy your first visit to this charming seaside town and the chance to get to know the Spencers. Any time I get an opportunity to write about the part of Virginia where I spent so many happy childhood summers, it feels like going home to those lazy, sultry days again.
As for Daisy, Bobby, Tucker and, of course, King, there is nothing I love more as an author than writing about families and about small towns. I think in this day and age, when so many of us have scattered around the country, far from our own families, books about families and tightly knit towns remind us of the way things used to be. They give us a sense of the kind of connectedness we long for. I hope you will come to think of the Spencers and all the residents of Trinity Harbor as family and that youâll find that Anna-Louise provides a moral compass in todayâs increasingly complex world.
After youâve read Daisyâs story, I hope youâll move right on to Bobbyâs story in Ask Anyone. The best part of these reissues is that all three titles are available now. And in Ask Anyone, I guarantee that thereâs an incredible woman waiting in the wings to spice up Bobbyâs life and that there will be yet another test of wills between him and his father over just about everything. Just thinking about it puts a smile on my face.
All good wishes,
For Relda and Kyle,
with thanks for all the boating background, and for the friendsâold and newâin the ârealâ Trinity Harbor (aka Colonial Beach, Virginia). You all keep me inspired.
Prologue
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
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Epilogue
T he whole town of Trinity Harborâprobably the whole state of Virginiaâwas buzzing like a swarm of bees, and whose fault was it? His daughterâs. Robert King Spencer slammed down the phone for what had to be the fifteenth time that morning and rued the day heâd ever bred such an ungrateful lot of kids.
Daisy, of all people, his beautiful, headstrong, but previously sensible thirty-year-old daughter, was stirring up gossip like a rebellious teenager. It was exasperating. No, King thought, it went beyond that. It was humiliating.
He had half a mind to go charging over to her place and put a stop to things before she tarnished the Spencer name with her shenanigans, but heâd learned his lesson on that score. A father interfered in his childrenâs lives at his own peril. Better to handle things from the sidelines, subtly.
King could all but hear the laughter of his family and friends at that. It was true, subtlety wasnât exactly his style. Never had been, but for once he could see the value in using other people to do his dirty work. His sons, for instance.
Tucker and Bobby ought to be able to straighten out this mess. Tucker was the sheriff, for goodnessâ sakes. Maybe he could wave that badge of his around and get Daisy to see reason.
King sighed. Not likely. Tucker took his duties seriously. He wasnât likely to use his office to carry out his daddyâs personal wishes. And Bobbyâ¦well, Bobby was an enigma to him. No telling what he would doâprobably the exact opposite of what King wanted.