Sherryl Woods - Harbor Lights

Dear Friends,

From the time I was four, I spent my summers along the Potomac River not far from the Chesapeake Bay. My love for this locale has grown out of those carefree days spent swimmingnot very wellin the river, walking along the beaches and, more recently, sitting on my front porch watching a bald eagle sit high in an old oak tree peering out at the water. Theres no place on earth quite like this in terms of beauty and tranquillity.

Though my love of the area grew over time, another member of my family was far more proactive in seeking to save this vast estuary. My mothers cousin, Tayloe Murphy, while in the Virginia House of Delegates and later as Director of Natural Resources for the state, has been heavily involved in both creating legislation and in oversight. He and others were my inspiration for some of the characters in Harbor Lights, including Mick OBriens brother Thomas.

Of course, Micks son, Kevin, has his own love of this region and it helps him to begin the healing process as he returns to the fictional town of Chesapeake Shores with his son after his wifes death in Iraq. I hope youll enjoy Kevins very emotional story and enjoy being back with all the OBriens.

And if you ever have the opportunity, I hope youll visit the Chesapeake Bay and come to understand why the fight to preserve its natural beauty is so important.

All good wishes,

F ormer army medic Kevin OBrien had seen his share of combat, violence and death. Hed served two tours in Iraq before being discharged a few months ago. In his current job as a paramedic in Arlington, Virginia, hed been on plenty of accident scenes, treated gunshot victims, and gone on domestic violence calls where arguments had turned nasty. None of it, though, had prepared him emotionally for spending a day with a sick kidhis sick kid.

Hed spent the night pacing the floor of his Northern Virginia town house, his miserable eleven-month-old son cradled against his shoulder. Davy intermittently squalled and whimpered, leaving Kevin frustrated and anxious and about ten seconds away from calling his grandmother back home in Chesapeake Shores for adviceor maybe hopping into his truck and driving straight over there. Gram would be thrilled to take over for him.

It was times like this when Kevin missed his wife the most. He could handle the basics of day care and meals, even the everyday medical stuffbaby aspirin, eardrops, whateverbut Georgia had the soothing voice down pat. He was almost certain that Davy never cried this loudlyas if his little heart were breakingwhen he was being held by his mom.

Unfortunately, Georgia had another six months to serve on her latest stint as a medic in Iraq. With a new baby in the house, she could have gotten out of the overseas assignment, but she had refused. Shed insisted on going where she thought she was most needed by the military and her country. If she kept her promiseand it was a big if in Kevins mindthis would be her last tour before she, too, was discharged. Then they planned to move to Maryland to be close to Kevins family in Chesapeake Shores, the quaint seaside town his father had built.

As terrified as Kevin had been of staying behind and being a single dad to an infant, hed understood Georgias devotion to duty. She wasnt the only mother whod made the difficult decision to leave her family behind to serve in the army. Besides, her very dedication to the mission was one of the things hed admired the most about Georgia when theyd met on the job at a hospital in Baghdads Green Zone, supposedly the safest spot to be in that war-torn country.

Kevin paused in his pacing to look at their wedding photo, sitting on the mantel. It was practically the only time hed seen Georgia in public wearing anything other than her medics uniform. He hadnt been able to get over how beautiful shed looked in the simple white gown, her golden hair in unaccustomed curls, her smile so bright it made his heart ache with missing her.

That theyd married in a rushed ceremony at the Baltimore airport had hardly mattered, because her father, a minister in Texas, had flown in at the last minute to officiate. Her mother had accompanied him. Georgia had sworn it didnt matter that they wouldnt have the lavish ceremony most girls dreamed of. It had been enough to have her family beside her when she and Kevin had wed.

Kevins only family member present for the brief service had been his dad, because hed wanted the rest of the family to meet Georgia for the first time at home on the banks of the Chesapeake Bay, not in a whirlwind in some sterile room at the airport. Hed taken plenty of grief over that decision, especially from his sisters.

Now he picked up the wedding picture and held it in front of Davy, as he did almost daily. Do you see this pretty woman, kiddo? This is your mom. I know youre sad without her, but Im doing the best I can. And your Uncle Connor is coming over here tomorrow to hook us up with a camera so well be able to talk to her and see her on the computer. Itll be almost as if shes right here with us.

Davy hiccuped, his eyes wide and shiny with unshed tears. Mama, he said, reaching toward the picture.

Kevin beamed at him. Thats exactly right. Thats your mama. Shes a real beauty, pal. The sweetest woman in the whole world. Feisty, too, and brave. Boy, does she have a mind of her own. Shes going to keep both of us on our toes once she gets home.