Page 17 of One Baddie for Three Daddies

"I think I'm about to get fired," I blurt out before she can say anything else.

"Whoa, whoa. Slow down. What happened?" Her tone shifts instantly, all business now.

"Remember Alex, Liam, and James, those three guys from college?" I pace back and forth in my snug living room, clutching my glass of wine like it's my lifeline. My nerves are frayed, and the Chardonnay isn't doing much to calm them.

"The ones you had that... peculiar setup with? How could I forget?" Aliyah laughs lightly, the sound a brief respite from my spiraling thoughts. "So, they're part of this mess?"

"They're not just involved. Liam and Alex hired me to design their new property," I say, my voice trembling slightly.

"Oh shit, what? They hired you?" Aliyah sounds as shocked as I felt this morning, her voice rising an octave.

"Yeah. And guess who I ran into at a bar last night? James. And we went home together."

"You've got to be kidding me," she exclaims, incredulous. "So you slept with him?"

"I did," I admit, as shame and exhilaration flood through me again. The memory of his touch, his commanding presence, it's all still so vivid.

"Damn, Bia! So, what’s the problem?"

"Liam and Alex showed up at James’s place this morning while I was still there. James isn’t friends with them anymore. And I literally ghosted all of them back then."

"Oof," Aliyah winces audibly. "That's... unfortunate timing."

"You think?" I drain my glass and pour another. "Now they think I've been seeing James all these years and that's why he ditched them and why I ghosted them."

"But you explained everything, right?"

"I tried! They said they’d think about whether or not they’ll fire me."

"Wow. Okay, so worst-case scenario: they fire you. But best-case scenario: you show them how amazing you are at your job and they get over themselves."

“Aliyah, I’m freaking out. What if they really fire me?” I ask, sinking further into the couch, the glass of Chardonnay now half-empty in my hand.

“Bia, calm down. You’re not helping yourself by spiraling like this,” Aliyah says firmly. “You need to do something about it. Sitting there crying won’t fix anything.”

“I know, but what can I do? It’s such a mess.”

“Well,” she says thoughtfully, “if you don’t want to get fired, you’ve got to make them recognize that firing you would be a huge mistake.”

“I tried explaining everything to them already.”

“Yeah, but clearly that wasn’t enough. Think bigger.”

I take another sip of wine, the tension in my shoulders slowly easing. “Bigger how?”

Aliyah is silent for a moment before she says, “What if you sleep with Liam and Alex?”

I nearly choke on my wine.

"Aliyah, are you out of your fucking mind?" I almost shout, the wine sloshing dangerously close to the rim of my glass. "I’m not about to sleep around just to keep a job. That's insane!"

"Relax, Bia," she says, unfazed by my outburst. "It’s not the same thing. Liam and Alex are technically your exes. You've already done it before."

I open my mouth to retort but nothing comes out. She has a point, even if it’s one I’m not comfortable admitting. I take another sip of wine, the cool liquid doing little to soothe my frayed nerves.

"Look," Aliyah continues, "it’s obviously too painful for them to be around you right now. That’s why they need time to think about it."

I scoff, shaking my head. "You really think that's the solution? More sex?"

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