New York Times and USA TODAY bestselling author Sherryl Woods captures a community’s heartfelt fight to preserve the innocence of childhood

When bullying threatens to destroy a teen’s life, painful memories resurface for dedicated high school teacher Laura Reed and pediatrician J. C. Fullerton. With the support of the Sweet Magnolias, they bring the town together to ensure that a promising student’s future isn’t ruined. And to establish once and for all that bullying has no place in Serenity, South Carolina.

Both J.C.’s and Laura’s passion for the cause is deeply personal, and their growing feelings for each other are just as strong. But with so many secret hurts to overcome, can these two vulnerable lovers find the strength to believe in happily ever after?

Praise for the novels of Sherryl Woods

“Sherryl Woods always delights her readers—including me!”

—#1 New York Times bestselling author Debbie Macomber

“Sherryl Woods gives her characters depth, intensity and the right amount of humor.”

—RT Book Reviews

“Charming characters combine to create the interfering, yet lovable O’Brien family…a satisfying, heartwarming conclusion to the Chesapeake Shores series.”

—RT Book Reviews on The Summer Garden

“The story is engaging and deftly accentuated by a sweet secondary romance.… If you have time to join the O’Briens in Dublin, I recommend that you do.”

—USA TODAY Happy Ever After blog on An O’Brien Family Christmas

“Once again, Woods proves her expertise in matters of the heart as she gives us characters that we genuinely relate to and care about. A truly delightful read!”

—RT Book Reviews on Moonlight Cove

“Love, marriage, family and forgiveness all play an important part in Woods’ latest richly nourishing, holiday-spiced novel.”

—Chicago Tribune on A Chesapeake Shores Christmas

“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

“Redolent with Southern small-town atmosphere, this emotionally rich story deals with some serious issues and delivers on a number of levels.”

—Library Journal on A Slice of Heaven

Also by New York Times and USA TODAY bestselling author Sherryl Woods

MIDNIGHT PROMISES*

THE SUMMER GARDEN***

AN O’BRIEN FAMILY CHRISTMAS***

BEACH LANE***

MOONLIGHT COVE***

DRIFTWOOD COTTAGE***

RETURN TO ROSE COTTAGE†

HOME AT ROSE COTTAGE†

A CHESAPEAKE SHORES CHRISTMAS***

HONEYSUCKLE SUMMER*

SWEET TEA AT SUNRISE*

HOME IN CAROLINA*

HARBOR LIGHTS***

FLOWERS ON MAIN***

THE INN AT EAGLE POINT***

WELCOME TO SERENITY*

SEAVIEW INN

MENDING FENCES

FEELS LIKE FAMILY*

A SLICE OF HEAVEN*

STEALING HOME*

WAKING UP IN CHARLESTON

FLIRTING WITH DISASTER

THE BACKUP PLAN

DESTINY UNLEASHED

FLAMINGO DINER

ALONG CAME TROUBLE**

ASK ANYONE**

ABOUT THAT MAN**

ANGEL MINE

AFTER TEX

*The Sweet Magnolias

**Trinity Harbor

***Chesapeake Shores

†The Rose Cottage Sisters

Look for Sherryl Woods’s next novel

WHERE AZALEAS BLOOM

available September 2012

Catching Fireflies

Dear Friends,

Unfortunately these days, hardly a day goes by without news of an incident of childhood bullying. Some of these are so horrific or tragic that they defy understanding. Those really grab our attention. Others are all too easily dismissed as some sort of rite of passage, an acceptable part of growing up.

The truth, though, is that bullying of any kind has the power to change who a child is, the kind of person he or she grows up to be. When ignored, the victim can be scarred for life, emotionally, if not physically. The perpetrator grows up with a skewed value system that suggests it’s perfectly okay to make another person’s life miserable, to feel powerful, even for a moment, at the expense of someone weaker.

It’s up to adults—parents, teachers, entire communities—to take a stand, to say bullying is not okay, not ever, not by anyone! And that’s exactly what happens in Serenity when schoolteacher Laura Reed and pediatrician J. C. Fullerton realize a student is being bullied. Both Laura and J.C. have experienced the damaging effects of bullying, so what’s happening to Misty Dawson is personal and unacceptable.

While there are often subtle messages tucked away in my stories, I hope the message in Catching Fireflies is loud and clear. There is nothing cute or normal or acceptable about bullying, whether it’s a toddler on the playground or a teenager using the internet to torment a classmate. Pay attention to what may be happening to your children, no matter how young or how old. Pay even closer attention to how they’re treating others. Bullying is wrong. It needs to stop. And alert parents and teachers and a united community can make that happen.

I hope you’ll enjoy spending time with all the Sweet Magnolias once more, and that you’ll take their message—and mine—to heart.

All best,

Sherryl

For all the young people who feel as if no one’s paying attention, I wish you at least one person who will listen and make your life better.

Contents

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

Questions for Discussion

Excerpt

1

It was little more than six weeks into the new school year, and already Serenity High School English teacher Laura Reed was seeing signs of a potential problem with one of her juniors. Misty Dawson had been skipping class for the past week. Attendance records showed she was in school, but when it came time for English, she disappeared off the radar.

“Was Misty in your class today?” she asked Nancy Logan, who taught history and current affairs.

“Front and center,” Nancy confirmed. “I wish I had a dozen students like her. She’s smart and she’s always prepared. Why? Don’t tell me she skipped English again?”

Laura nodded. “Afraid so, and I just don’t get it. All of her class records suggest that she’s one of the brightest English students in the school. She belongs in my advanced placement class. The first papers she turned in were excellent. She’s definitely not having trouble with the material. That’s what makes this so frustrating. It’s as if she simply vanishes during third period every day.”

Physical education teacher and longtime coach Cal Maddox, who’d come in to grab some bottled water from the refrigerator, joined them at the conference table set up in the teachers’ lounge.

“Sorry to eavesdrop, but have you mentioned this to Betty?” he asked, referring to their principal. “She needs to know if a kid’s not showing up for class.”

Just the thought of going to Betty Donovan with this made Laura shudder. A problem with a potentially simple solution would wind up being blown out of all proportion. Cal, of all people, should know