Her ghost. He could feel her at the ranch… in the house, the barn… and her sadness haunted him.

She should have had daughters.

She should have had girls for company. Girls who’d bake with her or sew with her. Girls who’d laugh and giggle and talk to her. Listen to her.

Men weren’t good at listening.

He shook his head once, chasing away the past, and the memory of his mother who had loved the Graff. He hadn’t restored the hotel for her. That would be idiotic because she was gone. But she had been the one to make him understand that beauty was transformative, and there was value in beautiful things. “Sometimes we do things because we think it’s the right thing to do… even when everyone else tells you you’re wrong.”

Dillon’s eyes, narrowed. He studied his older brother a long moment. “Mom would want you to be smart.”

“Too late,” Troy answered. “Looks like I’ve inherited her crazy.”

Dillon’s eyes narrowed another fraction of an inch. “Mom wasn’t crazy.” He hesitated. “She wasn’t happy. That’s different from crazy.”

Troy said nothing. This was not a subject he liked discussing.

“And yes, Mom and Dad had problems. From what I gather, no marriage is perfect.”

“But not all wives take their lives, do they?” Troy retorted.

Dillon flinched. “It’s too late to change the past.”

“I just wished I’d done something then.”

“How could you? You were a kid. We were all kids.”

“I wasn’t that young. I knew something was seriously wrong that night.”

“I’m sorry you had to be the one to find her. Dad should have checked on her himself.”

Troy shook his head. “Let’s not go there.”

“But you do. Constantly.” Dillon’s voice hardened. “It’s time you let it go. There’s no point in torturing yourself, or ruining your future, over something that’s in the past.”

“Are you talking about Mom or the hotel?”

“Maybe both.”

Chapter Four

‡‡

Taylor was rattled by Louise’s news that Troy would be attending the Wedding Giveaway meeting tonight. She opened the heavy door to the masculine Crawford Room, the private board room off the library’s main reading room, wondering why Jane hadn’t bothered to tell her that Troy would be coming.

Jane was supposed to be her friend. Her best friend in Marietta. And friends did not set friends up, much less with one’s gorgeous, popular, ridiculously successful ex.

Most of the committee had already taken a seat at the boardroom table. Taylor’s gaze swept the room, seeing all the usual committee members, including McKenna Douglas.

McKenna lifted a hand, gesturing to Taylor.

Taylor moved towards her, seeing McKenna in a new light.

Taylor had known that beautiful McKenna Douglas was a single mom, and a talented photographer specializing in wedding photography, but until tonight she hadn’t known that Taylor’s son’s father was Trey Sheenan. McKenna had never said anything, nor had anyone else.