Free Serendipity by Carly Phillips Page B

her daddy’s little girl, while Lanie Harrington resented the attention Martin Harrington showered on his daughter, the same attention she so desperately craved. It didn’t matter how much Faith’s father loved his wife—she always wanted more and had often blamed Faith for dividing Martin’s time when he was home. Added to the fact that Lanie didn’t know how to be a mother, their relationship had never been good.
    As an adult, Faith and her mother had drifted apart, which worked fine for Faith since she was able to distance herself from her mother’s constant negativity and demands. They’d rarely spoken when Faith had lived in New York, but after her father’s shocking revelations, Faith had held out hope she and her mother could begin to repair their fractured relationship.
    Upon returning to Serendipity, Faith reached out, assuming Lanie would welcome someone who understood the pain and loneliness she must be experiencing. What Faith discovered was that her mother’s holier-than-thou attitude about the world hadn’t changed despite the fact that her husband was in jail and she was now living on a fixed income enforced by her settlement with the government. Everything else in their names had been sold off, the proceeds put into a fund to repay the victims of his crimes. She held on to the warped belief that her husband was misunderstood and had never meant to hurt people. Therefore, as usual, both Lanie’s and her husband’s circumstances were everyone else’s fault.
    Lanie Harrington resided in a lovely house on the outskirts of town and, in Faith’s opinion, had made out fairly well, all things considered. In her mother’s opinion, she’d been robbed and life wasn’t fair. She’d been ostracized by the elite women of the community and shunned by the regular people Faith was trying so hard to live among and be a part of.
    Still, Faith called and her mother didn’t answer, whether she was sleeping in or not taking calls, Faith had been spared until next time. She left a message and turned to getting ready to meet with Ethan, beginning with sorting through her closet for business-appropriate attire. She settled on a black tank top dress with a pair of low kitten-heeled shoes that posed no threat of repeating last night’s unsteady wobbling.
    A few minutes later, she stepped outside of her apartment and realized she would have to call a taxi or walk to Ethan’s. She hadn’t owned a car in Manhattan and she hadn’t thought she’d need one here either, living smack in the heart of town. Besides, a car would be another luxury and she didn’t want to afford herself too many of those until she was bringing in a steady income.
    She’d have no choice but to call a cab from the one-person cab company in town, which would take at least half an hour to show up, making her late. She reached into her bag to find her cell phone when the sound of a car horn drew her attention.
    She turned and saw Ethan’s Jag in the parking lot, the man himself waving to her from the driver’s seat. She blinked in surprise and started down the stairs, careful to maintain a steady stride and not make an ass of herself—because he was definitely watching her.
    She walked up to his open window, placing a hand on the car. “What are you doing here?”
    â€œDo you have a car?” he asked.
    If he was here, she had a feeling he already knew the answer. But she shook her head in reply anyway.
    â€œDidn’t think so,” he said a bit too smugly for her liking. “But the truth is I just didn’t want you to find an excuse to miss our appointment.” His lips twisted in a wry grin.
    So he thought he’d be one step ahead of her, did he? Okay, he was. And there was nothing she could do about it. Nor did she want to. The man had offered her a much-needed career opportunity and had turned out to be her savior last