“Her boyfriend works in the mine. Word travels.”
“Why would Misty think to tell you that?”
Savannah refocused, shook her head, and averted her gaze. He saw the lie coming before she even answered. “Just conversation.”
“Savannah.”
She pulled in a deep breath and exhaled slowly. “We were just tossing around worst-case-scenario ideas.” She stared at the table. “I can’t lose Jamison.”
He wanted to reassure her, promise her she’d never lose him, but Ian didn’t have enough information to offer her that reassurance. “I can understand. He’s a great kid. And you’re a great mother.”
Her smile was quick but shy. “Thanks. He’s…” She shook her head. “He’s everything to me. My whole world.”
“The way it ought to be.” He paused before testing deeper waters. “Do you have family in town?”
“Oh no.” She shifted in the chair, rested her forearms on the table, and leaned forward, dropping her chin into one hand. “I don’t really have family. I mean, my mom’s still alive, but she has another family. We parted ways a long time ago.”
“Did you grow up here?” he asked, easing her toward confiding in him.
“No. Los Angeles, then Michigan.”
“What brought you here?”
“Hank.” A shadow darkened her eyes, and her gaze went distant. “We met at U of M.”
“University of Michigan?”
She nodded. “He was a different man then.”
“What changed?”
“Moving here.” She met his gaze, serious, sober. “This place, his father, the job. All of it. Over the last few years, he’s become a man I don’t recognize at all.”
“Why do you stay? Why not move to another town where he can’t harass you?”
She laughed, but the sound wasn’t humorous. “I think you’ve figured out by now that he wouldn’t take to that idea.” She shook her head. “Besides, that’s a looooong, messy story.”
“I’d like to hear it.” He leaned forward and rested his arms on the table, holding her gaze. He knew this was a long shot, but if he could get her alone, somewhere she felt safe, he might get a lot of information. “Over dinner? Sometime this weekend?”
Her gaze jumped to his, surprised. Color flushed her cheeks. “Oh…” She shook her head. “Um…”
“Mo told me about some hole-in-the-wall in Whitefish I have to try. Says it’s the best barbeque in the state.”
A smile quivered over her mouth. “Smoke.” She nodded. “It’s amazing. Haven’t been there in so long…”
“Does Jamison ever stay wit
h his father?”
“Rarely.” The mention of Hank killed her smile. “He uses work as an excuse to get out of taking him. He’s supposed to take Jamison Friday night, but he hasn’t come through on anything in so long—”
“Friday’s perfect,” he said before she could give him a definitive no. “Pick you up at six?”
“Like I said, he’s not the most reliable when it comes to Jamison. Besides, I don’t really, you know, date.”
Her rejection niggled beneath his ribs, a sure sign he was crossing that professional-personal line. Ian reined in his desire and refocused. She was a source of information, nothing more. “Because Hank doesn’t want you to date?”
Her gaze slid away with traces of embarrassment and disappointment. “No. Kind of. It’s…complicated.”