Dogwood Hill

#1 New York Times bestselling author Sherryl Woods tests the strength of the beloved O’Briens and proves that love and family can always triumph!

When former pro football quarterback Aidan Mitchell comes to Chesapeake Shores to take a high school coaching job, he’s embraced by the town—especially the O’Briens. But Aidan has a secret that could alter all their lives.

For wounded Liz March, who’s trying for a fresh start after a devastating betrayal, taking a chance on Aidan may be more than she can handle. Her heart, however, refuses to listen to her head. But just when forever seems within reach, Aidan’s secret threatens to change everything.

Does this tempting stranger who’s made her feel alive have the power to convince her to look beyond the past and reach for the future?

Praise for #1 New York Times bestselling author Sherryl Woods

“Sherryl Woods writes emotionally satisfying novels about family, friendship and home. Truly feel-great reads!”

—#1 New York Times bestselling author Debbie Macomber

“Woods is a master heartstring puller.”

—Publishers Weekly on Seaview Inn

“Woods’s readers will eagerly anticipate her trademark small-town setting, loyal friendships, and honorable mentors as they meet new characters and reconnect with familiar ones in this heartwarming tale.”

—Booklist on Home in Carolina

“Once again, Woods, with such authenticity, weaves a tale of true love and the challenges that can knock up against that love.”

—RT Book Reviews on Beach Lane

“In this sweet, sometimes funny and often touching story, the characters are beautifully depicted, and readers…will…want to wish themselves away to Seaview Key.”

—RT Book Reviews on Seaview Inn

“Woods…is noted for appealing character-driven stories that are often infused with the flavor and fragrance of the South.”

—Library Journal

“A reunion story punctuated by family drama, Woods’s first novel in her new Ocean Breeze series is touching, tense and tantalizing.”

—RT Book Reviews on Sand Castle Bay

“A whimsical, sweet scenario…the digressions have their own charm, and Woods never fails to come back to the romantic point.”

—Publishers Weekly on Sweet Tea at Sunrise

Sherryl Woods

Dogwood Hill

Dear Friends,

When a family is as strong as the O’Briens, there’s not a lot that can shake them to their very foundation. But when Aidan Mitchell comes to Chesapeake Shores as the new high school football coach, he brings with him a secret that’s definitely going to stir things up.

Add in a woman, newcomer Liz March, who has a few secrets of her own, and there’s plenty of drama on the horizon for those morning gabfests the O’Brien women like to have at Sally’s Café.

There’s nothing I enjoy more than spending time with the O’Briens, and this chance to cause a little stir in town was just too good to pass up. I hope you’ll enjoy how all the secrets unfold and how these two newcomers are embraced by the O’Briens. Once again, I think they prove that family is what counts, no matter how it’s cobbled together.

All best,

Sherryl

Contents

Cover

Back Cover Text

Praise

Title Page

Dear Reader

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Copyright

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Standing outside Chesapeake Shores High School on his first visit to this quaint small town on the Chesapeake Bay, Aidan concluded he’d never seen a more beautiful sight in his life.

Not the hillside covered with a forest of flowering pink and white dogwood trees, though that was spectacular and unexpected in the middle of town. Not the nearby bay, which was sparkling in the spring sun, though it made him yearn to go fishing despite the fact it was something he’d done only once before in his life. Not even the state-of-the-art football stadium with its pro-level electronic scoreboard, its lush grass and impressive permanent bleachers, all of which should have knocked his socks off as the school’s prospective coach.

Nope, what caught his eye was the slender woman with her blond hair tousled, her laugh carrying on the breeze as she chased a puppy that was trying valiantly to herd a flock of unhappy Canada geese.

Just then the dog, some sort of black, white and brown Aussie shepherd mix from the looks of him, spotted Aidan, bounded over and tried to corral him into joining the geese in the nice tight group he was apparently envisioning in his instinctive puppy brain. With a black patch of fur around one eye, he bore a striking resemblance to a pirate, causing Aidan’s smile to spread.

“Stop it! Archie, that’s enough,” the woman commanded, fighting hard, but unsuccessfully, to swallow another laugh. “Sit. Be nice.”

Archie obediently sat, tongue lolling, and gave Aidan a hopeful look.

“I’m so sorry,” she said. “He got away from me.”

“No problem,” Aidan replied.

“Actually it is a problem. The town has very strict leash laws,” she explained as she snapped Archie’s leash to his collar, “except for the dog park on the other side of the hill. It’s fenced in, so the dogs are allowed to run free, but Archie here spotted the geese, instinct kicked in and the second someone opened the gate, he took off on a mission to round them up. He thinks it’s his job.”