Letting Go (Mitchell Family #1)(7)
Author: Jennifer Foor

“We ran into each other earlier.” She said as she turned my way and bit down on her bottom lip.

I gave her a wink and tried not to watch she and Van havin’ it out.

“Get over it Van. You need to get out. Your life is wasting away. He wouldn’t want you to be like that.” Sabrina suggested.

Van wasn’t having it. “Don’t tell me what he would and wouldn’t want Sabrina! Seriously, back the hell off!” I felt the truck shift and then saw Van standing in front of the cooler. She helped herself to a couple beers and took off away from the circle of vehicles.

Sabrina came over and sat on the tailgate next to me. “Should we go after her?” I asked.

“No, she is being a bitch. Let her have a beer and calm down. She will be fine.” Sabrina said.

I finally noticed that she wasn’t dressed nearly as sexy as Van, in fact she was wearing just normal jean shorts and a t-shirt that said flirt across the chest. Her red hair was up in a ponytail and she had feather earrings in both ears. She didn’t waste any time with her seduction. Her hand went from my knee to my inner thigh within seconds.

“Darlin’, I suggest you slow down.”

She leaned into my face. “I have wanted a piece of this since before I had tits.” She whispered.

I was midstream with my beer and almost choked when I heard her say that. That mixed with her hand reaching the waistline of my pants was enough for me to stand up. “Listen here. I am all for taking you someplace and letting you do whatever your pretty little heart desires, but I brought my cousins girl here tonight and it is my job to get her home safe.”

She seemed annoyed from the moment her hands left my crotch and she hopped off the truck. “Fine!”

I grabbed us two more beers and we made our way through the crowd of people. A few guys recognized me immediately and came up to say hello. Sabrina wrapped her arms into mine as if we were an item. Finally, I pulled myself free and started to ignore her. I had just got out of a clingy relationship and I was not about to start a new one with this chick.

All at once I heard someone screaming the word “fight” and watched as the entire crowd of people ran in one direction away from the fire. I wasn’t concerned about watchin’ a fight. I was getting too old to be dealin’ with things that did not concern me, but something in my gut told me to walk over there anyway.

I was much taller than the people in front of me and could see that the fight was between a bunch of girls. Three blondes were yelling, but I couldn’t make out what they were saying from the back of the crowd. I could hear the people around me yelling “hit her”. I tried to spot Sabrina in the crowd, but couldn’t find her. I pushed my way closer just as I got a glimpse of Van being held down by two blondes, while the third was punching her and kicking her. She was trying to kick her way free but the other blonde sat on her legs. She was crying and screaming underneath them.

Anger filled me and I managed to push everyone in the crowd away from me. When I reached the girls, who hadn’t seen me coming I pushed two of them at once off of Van, while the other continued to kicking her in the side. She got one look at me and backed away from me.

“Get the f**k away from her, all of you!” I yelled as I picked her limp body up into my arms and carried her away from the crowd. I didn’t walk toward the truck, she didn’t need another audience. Instead, I carried her away and sat her down in a patch of moss on the edge of the woods.

Her shirt was ripped and she had scratch marks across her chest. I moved her hair away from her face and noticed her cheek was bleeding, and all around her nose and lips were covered in blood too. “Van, I am so sorry. What happened?”

She just started crying worse, so I held onto her and let her cry it out. “Shhh, you are safe now. I won’t let them touch you.”

She clung to my shirt and I let her. I had been a fool to have forced her to come here, obviously people were being far worse than I originally thought.

When I couldn’t kneel any longer, I stood up and picked her up again. She let me without a fight and I carried her to the truck. Sabrina was waiting there for us. “Where did you go? Oh my God Van, I had no idea. I am so sorry.” She apologized.

Savanna didn’t speak. She just clung to my chest with her eyes closed and the tears pouring out.

“I’m gonna have to take a rain check on that alone time Sugar.” I said as I got Van into the truck.

“I can meet you later.” She offered.

“No can do. I think my cousin would expect I made good on taking care of Van tonight. I can’t take her to her mommas like this.”

She nodded but looked disappointed. “Fine, your loss though.”

Right then I was glad I hadn’t taken her home. She was not someone I wanted to associate with no matter what special skills she may or may not have had.

Chapter 5

Savanna

I knew it was a bad idea going there, but I had no clue it would be that bad. I was walking away from everyone just trying to get to a place where I could sit alone, when Heather and her band of bitches came walking toward me. I looked around the truck and knew I was finally safe.

“Van are you okay?” Colt asked as we were heading away from the party.

“Not really.” I admitted.

I was balled up against the window of the truck. I didn’t look over at him, but I could hear him hitting the steering wheel. “Dammit. I should have never let her talk me into bringing you out.”

“It’s not your fault Colt.”

I could taste the blood on my lips and my face was stinging like crazy. I was afraid to touch anything that hurt in fear that it was worse than I could imagine.

“What the hell happened?”

I shrugged even though I didn’t know if he was looking in my direction. The tears ran down my face. “They came out saying I killed him. They said he was planning on telling me we were through for good. ” I started crying so bad that I couldn’t get any more words out.

“Aww hell, you didn’t kill anybody Sugar. You know that right?”

I wasn’t sure if I believed him. I wanted to, but Tyler was basically lifeless. If it weren’t for my decisions, he would be fine.

When we had drove without words for more than ten minutes, I let myself fall asleep and I only knew it because when I opened my eyes next I was in Colt’s arms, being carried to the carriage house at the Mitchell farm. He got me inside and took me right into the bathroom. I sat down on the seat of the toilet while he rummaged through the first aid kit.