I’ll take you shopping, and Taylor, you have to go. We’re sitting at the Sheenan table. It’d be rude to not go now.”

Taylor backed out from the parking spot, shifted into drive. “Just have catering remove a place setting and chair from the table. No one will even notice if there is eight, nine, or ten at the table.”

“Yes, they will.”

“No, they won’t.”

“Yes. They will.” Jane exhaled hard before adding in a small voice, “Because you’re Troy Sheenan’s date.”

“What?” Taylor slammed on her brakes and stared at Jane.

“He just broke up with his girlfriend and he needed a date and you didn’t have a date so I told him–”

“No, you did not.”

“I did.”

“Why would you do that?”

“He’s really nice.”

“No he’s not. You said he broke your heart.”

“Okay, nice is maybe the wrong word. But he is seriously gorgeous and sexy and smart. Very, very smart. And successful. Rich as Midas—”

“Jane, no. He sounds awful. Yuck. No.”

“It’s just for the ball. You can go with Mitch and me. We’ll drive you home. And I promise that Troy won’t make a move—”

“No.”

“Although he is by far the best kisser—”

“Don’t care. Don’t want to know.” Taylor’s hands tightened on the steering wheel as she moved her foot from the brake to the gas pedal. “And you agreed after that last terrible set up that you wouldn’t put me through anymore blind dates.” She shot Jane a severe look. “I’m holding you to that promise, Jane.”

Jane slunk down in her seat. “I’m not asking you to marry him, just be his date.”

Taylor said nothing, her gaze narrowed and focused on the road.

“Normally I wouldn’t set him up. I wouldn’t want to see him with another woman but you’re not… plastic… and you wouldn’t be into him for his money…” Jane’s voice drifted off. She shifted uncomfortably in her seat. Silence followed.

Taylor clamped her jaw tight.

She was not interested in going to the ball, and definitely not interested in being set up with gorgeous, rich, sexy Troy Sheenan, Jane’s ex-love, whom Taylor had heard far too much about over the past few months.

Good Lord. From everything Jane had said, Troy was a handsome, ruthless, self-absorbed playboy. Could anything be worse?

“You’d enjoy talking to him,” Jane said faintly, hands knotting in her lap. “He’s very smart—brilliant, really—and exceedingly well read. You should see his personal library—”

“Jane.”

“He’s just got his hands full with his break up, his dad dying, and hosting the ball for us in his hotel. It’s a massive expense that he personally is underwriting.”

Taylor flexed her fingers against the steering wheel. “That’s not my problem, and it’s not yours, either.”

“I know, but I offered to help—”

“Wait.