Broken Dreams (Broken 2)

Mitch stood up and wiped the blood away from his mouth and nose. “Fuck you, Reed. You can’t tell me what to do,” Mitch said. Then, he looked over at me. “Did you fuck him last night, Court? I know how much you’ve been wanting to.”

I sucked in a breath of air. Who is this person standing in front of me? He wasn’t the same person I had been dating for the last year. Men are all the same. They’re all lying, deceiving fakes.

“You better shut the hell up, Mitch. So help me God, I’ll kill you if you say another word to her,” Reed said as he took a step closer to Mitch.

I stepped in between them and put my hands up to stop Reed. I turned around and faced Mitch. “I heard you.”

He looked confused and shook his head. “What in the hell are you talking about, Courtney? You heard me what?”

I took a deep breath and closed my eyes before opening them again. I looked straight into his eyes. “You accidentally called me last night. I heard everything you said to her, and then I heard y’all…I heard…” I couldn’t even get it out.

Mitch closed his eyes and dropped his head. “Damn it, Courtney. I didn’t want you to find out like that. It’s just…”

I felt the anger building up inside of me, but when Reed put his hands on my shoulders, I instantly calmed down just from his touch.

“How long, Mitch? How long have you been cheating on me?” I asked as I tried to hold back the tears.

“Does it matter, Court? I mean, it doesn’t really matter. You’ve been in love with Reed ever since we’ve been together. Don’t deny it. You have a very bad habit of talking in your sleep, sweetheart,” Mitch said. He glanced at Reed and then back at me.

“What?” I whispered.

Shit…what have I been saying about Reed in my sleep? I shook my head to clear my thoughts.

“So, you’re blaming this on me? I’ve never been unfaithful to you, and you…” I took another breath. “Just tell me, how long have you been screwing your ex?”

“I think you should just leave now,” Karen said as she smirked at me.

I wasn’t sure what came over me, but I walked over to her, reached back, and punched the shit out of her.

“Courtney! Holy shit!” Mitch yelled as he grabbed Karen and looked at her mouth. “Baby, are you all right?”

Mitch looked at me and screamed, “Six months, Courtney! I’ve been with Karen for six months now. I thought for sure you’d find your way to the asshole behind you, but you just wouldn’t leave. Even when we stopped having sex so many months ago, you still held on to a fucking dream that was never going to happen. I don’t love you, and you don’t love me. I never loved you, Courtney.”

I took a step back and shook my head. “But all those things you said. You told me…”

Mitch helped Karen up and looked back at me. “I told you what you wanted to hear, Courtney. The only reason I went after you is because I knew Reed wanted you.”

“Motherfucker,” Reed said as he lunged at Mitch again.

Reed got two or maybe three good punches in before I pulled him back and away from Mitch.

“Leave. Now!” Reed shouted.

“Fuck off, Reed. You can’t tell me what to do,” Mitch said as he helped Karen into his house.

Reed grabbed Mitch and pushed him up against the house before getting right into his face. This time, I took a few steps back. I didn’t even care if Reed killed Mitch at this point.

“I can, asshole. I’m fifty percent in partnership with Layton now, so I’m your boss, motherfucker, and I just fired your ass. Layton also told me to deliver a message to you as soon as possible.”

Mitch smirked and was about to say something, but Reed hit him in the stomach. Mitch doubled over.

“That’s from Layton. You have an hour to get the hell out of here and off this ranch.”

Reed turned around, grabbed my hand, and practically pulled me back to the ranch truck. He opened the door for me, and when I jumped in, he leaned in and smiled.

“That was some punch, Rocky.” He winked and shut the door.

My face got hot, and I couldn’t help but smile. I’d never in my life hit anyone.