“Damn,” Hank ran a hand across the back of his neck. “Areyousure?”
“I can drive myself,” Carol said. “Your brothersneedyou.”
“No, they have it under control,” Madison said. “Go run errands. Trust me, Mack is much happier with a hammer in his hand than with a bag ofgroceries.”
“True,” Hank said. “All right, let’s get going. I can check on them thisafternoon.”
He placed a hand on the small of Carol’s back and guided her toward the front door. When they reached his truck, she stopped. Guilt wove its way into her heart. Her mission didn’t have anything to do with him. She didn’t want to ruin his day, especially if his brothersneededhim.
“I feel really bad about asking you to come with me,”shesaid.
“You didn’t ask. Ioffered.”
“I know, but I probably won’t find anything anyway. Maybe this is a wild goosechase.”
The urge to run back to the B & B, pack her bags, and return to New York nearly overwhelmed her. She didn’t want to admit it, but she was terrified of what she’d find if she was able to locate her birthmother.
“If itisa wild goose chase, then we’ll be back sooner. Either way, I’m going into town, so you might as well take me up on my offer to drive. The roads are plowed in West Yellowstone, but they’re still slick,”hesaid.
“Okay.”
When he offered his hand to help her into the truck, she took it. He was such a gentleman. It felt good to be treated like a lady. She’d dated a little bit, but the guys hadn’t been very nice to her. In fact, most of them had been complete assholes. She wasn’t a hot, skinny girl though, so what did sheexpect?
As Hank expertly navigated the roads, she stared out of the window. Frosted pine trees danced in the wind, dropping chunks of snow from their branches. Sunlight snuck through the trees to cast glistening rays on fallen logs. Birds flitted across the road, circling each other before darting up towardthesky.
When they reached the outskirts of town, she sat up straighter so she could get a better view. As they headed into town, a huge Christmas tree sparkled in the center of a small park. Everything was blanketed in a thick layerofsnow.
After they turned right onto Electric Street, she spotted twinkling lights in all of the store windows. They drove past a Dairy Queen which was almost completely buried in snow. They probably didn’t keep it open in the winter. It made sense—who would want ice cream when it was ten degreesoutside?
As Hank parked on the street directly in front of a small group of offices, her heart thudded. She needed to know who she was and where she’d come from, but the first step scared her to death. Her parents hadn’t wanted her, but why? Was her mother a teen mom? Did her father even know about her? And if he did, was he sorry that they gave her away? Or was he the one who sent her mother to New York to havethebaby?
Hank hopped out of the truck and then jogged around to open her door. When she stepped out, her boot slipped on the snow and she pitched forward intohisarms.
“Whoa,” he said. He didn’t release her right away. Instead, his hands rested lightly on her waist. “Should I come inwithyou?”
“No. I’m not sure what I’m going to find, if anything, so I’d rather do italone.”
“Okay. I’m going to run to the store to get Madison’s supplies. I’ll be back in thirty minutes. If you get out early, wait in the diner across the street,”hesaid.
“Iwill.”
When he stepped back, she immediately missed the comforting feel of his hands. She stared at the law office’s door, took a deep breath, and then blew it out. What other option did she have at this point? She had to startsomewhere.
She pulled the door open and stepped inside. As she turned to close it, Hank waved and gave her a smile of encouragement. It was exactly what she needed. The tension in her back relaxed. She could do this. She could face the truth about herfamily.
After he’d driven away, she turned to find an empty reception desk. She waited for several minutes. When no one appeared, she eyed the door which led to the back portion of the office. Maybe she should just poke her head in to see if anyone was there. It was nine a.m. and they were clearly open for business. Maybe they were in a meetingalready?
Before she could decide what to do, the door swung open. A tall man with thinning gray hair and wire-rimmed glasses strolled into the room. He jumped when hespottedher.
“Oh, I wasn’t expecting any clients today,”hesaid.
“I didn’t make an appointment,”shesaid.
“Well, I’m Mr. Hollingsworth, what can I doforyou?”
“I’m trying to find my birth mother. I think she may have lived in West Yellowstone around the time I was born,” sheblurted.
“What makes you think she was from here?” heasked.
