path.”
“And what if I don’t?” he asked, reaching out a finger to graze her knuckles. The touch sent electricity spiking along his nerve endings, and she quickly pulled away. “What if I can’t?”
She drew in a sharp breath, her warm green eyes turning cold. “Then it will go badly for us both.”
CHAPTER FOUR
CARRIE ENTERED THE FAIRVIEW outside Raleigh the following afternoon and immediately felt out of place. The lavish five-star hotel seemed to cater exclusively to guests who were both wealthy and sophisticated by the look of the people milling about the elegant lobby.
She smoothed a hand over her shapeless maxi dress and wished she’d done something more with her hair than pull it back into a messy bun.
It had been years since she’d last seen her mother and now she regretted that she’d agreed to meet Vanessa Reed at the hotel where she worked as general manager. Carrie should have chosen a neutral location where she wouldn’t feel so small-town and unsuitable.
The Fairview was already decorated for the holidays, with shining swaths of silk ribbon, beautiful floral arrangements and an array of spectacular floor-to-ceiling trees covered with colorful ornaments and bows. She couldn’t imagine how much time and effort it took to coordinate such a lavish display of festivity. It felt as if she’d been working around the clock with the downtown business owners in Magnolia to put together a cohesive theme for their holiday celebration, but their efforts didn’t hold a candle to the impressive beauty of the hotel her mother managed.
A woman stood behind the concierge desk, giving Carrie a dismissive once-over when she made eye contact. Swallowing down the feeling of not belonging, Carrie approached.
“Excuse me?”
The woman, Amy, according to the name tag affixed to her smart uniform, glanced up. “May I help you?” she said in a tone that was anything but helpful.
“I’m looking for Vanessa Reed,” Carrie said with a forced smile. “Could you direct me to her office?”
Amy’s full lips thinned as she stared at Carrie with a look as if she’d just asked for an audience with the queen. Carrie would guess that she and Amy were around the same age, but the young concierge’s condescending attitude made Carrie feel like an annoying child begging for attention.
“The employment office is open by appointment only,” Amy announced. “You’ll apply online first and then someone will contact you. It won’t be Ms. Reed.”
Carrie blinked. “I’m not applying for a job.” Her chest tightened as she considered how much to share with this rude woman. “I’m here to see my mother.”
If she’d expected a shift in the woman’s attitude, she would have been disappointed. Amy’s big eyes widened just a fraction. “Ms. Reed doesn’t have a family.”
Carrie took a step back, the casual words a direct hit to her heart. Her mother had worked at The Fairview since she’d left Magnolia. Surely her staff was aware she had a daughter.
“There you are, Carrie. Why are you bothering the staff? I told you to come directly to my office.”
The scent of Chanel No. 5 enveloped Carrie as she turned toward her mother, bringing back a flood of memories from childhood. Vanessa might have changed almost everything about herself after leaving Magnolia, but her signature perfume remained the same.
As Carrie had spent time cleaning out her father’s house in the weeks after his death, she would have sworn that she’d caught random whiffs of her mom’s distinctive scent.
A riot of emotions coursed through Carrie as she looked into familiar green eyes so like her own. Vanessa hadn’t seemed to age since Carrie had last seen her. Hard to say if it was good genes or a great plastic surgeon. Her mother’s natural brown hair was dyed a few shades lighter than she used to wear it and cut into a stylish layered bob that framed her delicate features.
Carrie desperately wanted a do-over on the morning. She would have taken more time with her appearance before making the drive to Raleigh. Spending her whole life in Magnolia and the last decade as her father’s assistant had made her complacent on all levels. She’d once had big dreams for herself, but her existence had become so small that it felt as if it could fit on the tip of a needle.
Her identity in her hometown had seemed set in stone so she’d stopped trying to be something different than what people expected of her. Niall Reed’s devoted daughter.
She rolled her shoulders against the bitterness that sat on them like