Audacity uses a database manager SQLite (currently SQLite3) to manage its .aup3 project workspaces. This allows Audacity to keep everything contained within a single file.
The error “Audacity failed to read from a file in X:” can occur when a data within the database is corrupted. This particular error is somewhat of a red herring as it does not describe the underlying problem well.
The underlying problem is that the database is (or appears to be) corrupted. For repairing corrupted databases see: Corrupt or Otherwise Broken Audacity Project Recovery
SQLite performs well when the database is entirely contained on the local machine. There can sometimes be problems when the file is accessed over a network or remotely. For a discussion of these issues, see: SQLite Over a Network, Caveats and Considerations
I don’t know why you are getting the error on Mac, but not on Windows. It is possible that the database is only “mildly” corrupted but the error is being caught because of the difference in access methods between the two operating systems. If this were my situation, I would go back to my Windows machine, and perform the database repair steps.