Which was a lovely, subtle masculine cologne that hinted at spice and something rich and mellow and smooth… vanilla, maybe?

But these attributes were quickly turning into negatives. His scent and warmth and the sheer physicality of the man was proving most distracting.

Taylor fidgeted unhappily, tugging on her notepad, drawing it more firmly in front of her. She’d been fine until he arrived. Now she couldn’t follow the thread of the discussion, the voices around her a whir of sound, the committee members a blur.

Why had he come tonight?

Meanwhile, various committee members continued updating Troy on various details. There would be flowers everywhere—tulips, roses, lilies, freesias—the most romantic, lush flower arrangements one could imagine, and a DJ and band, and Sage from Copper Mountain Chocolates was in charge of the elaborate dessert buffet, and then some lighting specialists would be bathing the ballroom ceiling in pink lights. It was going to be an incredible ball. Beyond beautiful. And Taylor wasn’t going.

And she was glad she wasn’t going.

She was.

She really was.

Troy sat in the library listening to the committee update its members with the ball details. Everyone was so enthusiastic, and it was the first time Marietta had thrown such an extravagant party so he wasn’t surprised ticket sales were down.

After awhile though, the details just became details and he didn’t need to hear them all. He zoned out for a bit, studying McKenna’s pale face. McKenna was most definitely not good with him here. It hadn’t always been the case. They’d once been very close. She was the sister he’d never had. Trey and McKenna had been together off and on since high school, and everyone knew that one day Trey and McKenna would get married. But life kept throwing them curveballs, and it seemed as if McKenna had finally had enough.

He didn’t blame her. He couldn’t. She’d been a rock in the face of endless chaos and adversity. She deserved a happy-ever-after and she wasn’t going to get that with Trey serving time in prison for involuntary manslaughter. True, it was a bar fight he didn’t start, but that punch he threw killed a man and the judge came down hard on him, adding some extra time to the mandatory minimum sentence.

Troy sighed. Dad had taken it so hard when Trey was sentenced to five years.

It was then that Dad just seemed to give up.

The family was a mess. The Sheenans had once been a strong, tight-knit family but those days seemed long gone.

Uncomfortable, Trey shifted in the library chair, trying not to glance at his watch, trying not to look at McKenna, trying not to make eye contact with the funny little librarian even though he was very much aware of her.

Last night he’d been surprised by Taylor’s refusal to attend the ball with him, but now he was amused. He wasn’t accustomed to being rejected. In his world, women chased him and he spent tremendous energy dodging his computer and phone, overwhelmed by the number of women texting and calling, instant messaging and sending flirty snapchats. He appreciated a beautiful woman. He admired a smart, beautiful woman. But he wasn’t comfortable being chased. He didn’t like feeling hunted.

Back in school he’d been popular. The Sheenan brothers were good looking boys. None of them had ever lacked for girls, or dates.