Blinding Trust (Mitchell Family #7)(17)
Author: Jennifer Foor

“We’re goin’ to have to let Zeke get to know Noah. There’s no way around it, without things gettin’ real ugly.” I hated saying it out loud. Her face went from concerned to stunned in a matter of seconds.

“No judge will let that happen.”

“Mike said that with Zeke’s money and who he knows, there’s a chance things would get ugly and we would lose. I don’t want Noah dragged through magazines. I don’t want him bein’ some paparazzi’s story.”

“What are you saying?”

“I talked to Zeke tonight on the phone. He’s agreed to drop everything if I allow Noah to come see him at his house, once his tour is over.”

“That is not happening, Colt! Over my dead body am I going to put our son on a plane and just let him go.”

I appreciated how devoted she was. “He ain’t goin’ alone. I’m goin’ with him.”

“You have to run the ranch. You can’t just leave. If it has to be done, I will go.”

“Savanna, I love you and you are the best mother to all three of our children, but you aren’t Krista. I think it’s best if I take Noah. Zeke is goin’ to want to talk about her and since she and I shared a past, it’s better that Noah knows that I did care about her. Right now he thinks I wished her dead. I need to fix that.”

I knew it hurt Savanna. She got quiet and refused to reply. She shook her head and got up out of bed. I even tried to reach for her, but she walked out of the room with tears in her eyes.

Ever since the day that Noah came into our lives, she’d been his everything. I knew her heart was broken. How was I supposed to choose my wife’s happiness over my son’s safety? What kind of father would I be if I just didn’t care about Noah or where he went. She had to know that I was trying to do the right thing for our family. My job was to protect them and that was all I was trying to do.

It was obvious that my wife didn’t want to be near me. Maybe I should have went and looked for her. I honestly didn’t know if she just wanted to be alone, or she was expecting me to run after her. Women were complicated and they played too many head games. Sometimes, I just wished she would have spelled things out for me.

I expected her to come back to bed at some point during the night, but she never did.

Chapter 9

Savanna

I was more than hurt.

I was angry.

I felt betrayed and like I was losing my hold on my own family. It felt like I was being pushed to the side, after devoting my whole life to being Noah’s mother. The pain ripped through my heart, leaving me feeling so alone inside.

I sat out on the porch, in the dark, for the longest time. Colt wasn’t too keen on me getting overemotional. He said that I needed to stop wearing my heart on my sleeve and grow a backbone. I couldn’t help that I was a sensitive kind of person.

After all that I’d been through, I just couldn’t find an easy way to change. Sure, I was better than before, but when it came to one of my children, it was a different story.

I slept on the couch, trying to avoid looking at my husband, after he’d made a major decision without including me in it. It was true, I didn’t have custody or adoption papers for Noah. I should have gotten them a long time ago, but we never thought anyone would ever bother us about it. We shared the same last name and had been so open to Noah about Krista.

The next morning, I focused on getting the kids ready for school. Colt tried to be nice, but I ignored him as much as possible. I knew he was trying to do the right thing. I wasn’t mad at him for his decision. I was mad because he left me out of it.

When the kids were gone and Colt had gone off to work, I did what I did every time I needed someone to talk to.

I called the salon.

Scissor Sounds this is Amy.

It’s Van. I need to vent. Are you busy?

Miranda isn’t coming in today. She and Ty took the kids to the zoo. I don’t have a client for the next thirty minutes. What’s up? You okay?

How are you even working, being so pregnant?

I’m used to it. I sit whenever I don’t have a client, so it isn’t so bad.

Plus, you could always walk into the house and take a nap, I guess.

That’s right! So what’s up?

Well, you know Zeke came over to visit with Noah, right?

Yeah, what you didn’t tell me, Conner filled me in.

After it went so horribly, Zeke called his lawyer and had him threaten us with visitation rights.

What?

Yep. He knew we would be left with no other options.

You could have let it go to court and proved he wasn’t fit to have visitation.

Our lawyer told Colt that he could buy the win. Do you believe that? He said it would cost us too much and we may not win. Either way Noah would have to get to know Zeke.

So, what are you going to do?

Colt is going with him when he visits.

Are you for real?

Yeah. I don’t even know what to say to him right now. I feel like I have no say at all.

Van, I’m sorry you are going through this. I hate when things happen that we can’t control. I’m here if you need anything.

I know. I think I just needed someone to tell me that I wasn’t just being a selfish bitch.

You aren’t. You have raised that child as your own. You have every right to be concerned and feel what you feel.

Thanks, Amy. I better get off of here. I have a doctor’s appointment this morning.

Okay. I hope your day gets better. Love ya!

Love you, too.

It took me no time at all to get a shower and leave for my doctor’s appointment. I had avoided going and rescheduled my annual pap test for two months. Just the thought of those cold metal forceps spreading me open made me cringe. I think my mind made it much worse than it actually was. At any rate, I still hated getting it done.

The waiting room was filled with pregnant women. I thought about Amy being pregnant and even considered missing that feeling. Then I remembered child birth and even what Miranda had gone through. After having the twins, Miranda had her tubes tied. It was to prevent her having to go through a dangerous pregnancy. I don’t think she cared. They had three healthy children and the boys were a huge handful anyway. Ty never complained about not being able to have any more children. They were always on the same page in their marriage. Sometimes, I envied that so much, especially considering what I was going through at the moment.

When they called my name to come back, I felt that tense feeling in the pit of my stomach. The nurse showed me to my room and pointed to the sheet that I was supposed to strip down and put over my naked body. As she walked out, I turned and looked at the stirrups that my feet would soon be in.