Page 39 of My Boss's Sons

Deciding that I was desperate enough for a minute alone with the guys to be rude to Davis, I stood up from the couch and cleared my throat. “Alright. It’s getting late. Davis, say goodnight to Lily.”

Lily yawned and stretched her arms out for him. “Night, night, Daddy. Carry me to bed?”

“I’ll kiss you goodnight in a little bit, sweetie. Say goodnight to the guys.” I wrapped my arms around my stomach and chewedon my lower lip as I waited for Davis to take a hint. “After you do that, just let yourself out, Davis. If you decide you want to take the day with her tomorrow, just let me know.”

“Night, Noah. Night, Ethan. Night, Alex. Thanks for coming to my party.” Lily wobbled over to the guys and surprised me by giving them each a hug. “Can I have a puppy?”

I let out a startled laugh. “What? Lily, why are you asking them for a puppy?”

She turned her sleepy eyes on me. “I had a dream they gave me a puppy. I want a puppy.”

Davis picked her up and rubbed her back. “Let’s talk about puppies tomorrow.”

Noah let out a breath as soon as Lily was out of earshot. “I was about two seconds from telling her she can have a puppy. She’s powerful when she’s sleepy and sweet like that.”

“I was already figuring out logistics for how to get her a puppy by the time she wakes up in the morning.” Ethan rubbed his jaw. “I’m still thinking about it. Are we getting her a puppy?”

I laughed and shook my head. “No. No, you’re not getting her a puppy. It wouldn’t be right for me to get a puppy that Ava and Milo would have to take care of every day just because they work from home. I’ve always wanted a puppy and never was able to get one because our dad was allergic. Or at least Mom said he was. Maybe when Lily’s older and can make sure Ava isn’t being forced to take on more responsibility than she signed up for.”

“Are you kidding me right now, Soph?” Hearing Alex call me that made me smile. “How are we not supposed to get you a puppy after that? Lily wants a puppy. You want a puppy. We want to get you a puppy. The math is telling me to get you a puppy.”

I wagged my finger at him. “No. I mean it. I can’t take care of a puppy properly and that wouldn’t be fair to the puppy.”

“What if we paid for it to go to puppy daycare during the weekdays? They even do pickup and dropoff now.” Ethan shrugged when his brothers looked at him. “Maybe I want a dog, too, and maybe I’ve done some research.”

“Don’t do it. I mean it.” I could see them not listening to me. “Guys, if you show up here with a puppy, I’m kicking your asses.”

Noah stretched out on the couch and patted his thigh. “Come here and say that to my face.”

I moved towards him but then Davis was there again, staring at me. I frowned. “I thought you were leaving.”

“I just need to talk to you for a second. It’s about Lily.”

I ground my teeth together and nodded. “Give me a second, guys.”

Davis led the way outside and when he saw that I didn’t close the door behind us, he shook his head and reached around me to pull it shut. “This is insane, Sophia.”

I crossed my arms over my chest and blew out a deep sigh. “What? What’s insane, Davis?”

“You don’t know those guys. I don’t want strangers around my daughter. They’ve got their hands all over you in front of her. What’s she learning right now, Sophia? Mommy’s got three boyfriends who can barely manage to keep their dicks put away and it’s completely normal? How old are they? This looks ridiculous, I hope you know.”

“Are you finished?”

He threw his hands in the air. “You look like a fool, Sophia. If no one else will tell you, I will. You look like an older woman who these guys realize they can talk into doing all sorts of degrading shit. Are you that-”

“Leave. You don’t get to talk to me like that.” I turned to go back inside but stopped. “You know what, Davis? Go fuck yourself. Do you understand how insulting it is that you look at me and don’t see a woman worthy of another male's attentionwithout it being some sort of game to them? You just said that those three men in there are only here with me because I must be letting them do degrading shit to me. They couldn’t possibly be here because they find me attractive, or because I have a great fucking personality. Nope. They clearly just couldn’t find someone their own age willing to spread their legs for them.”

He swore and took a step closer to me. “I didn’t mean it like that. You’re a single woman and guys like that see an easy target when they look at you. It’s not about you, Soph. It’s about them.”

I held up my hands to hold him off. “Don’t try to sweeten it up now, Davis. Let’s get real. I wasn’t enough when I was pregnant with Lily and you were fucking half of the women in our neighborhood and you still don’t think I’m enough now. Yet, you’re still here, hanging onto whatever fucked up feelings you have leftover from a marriage that ended over half a decade ago. Why? It makes literally no sense to me. I’ve tried so hard to be nice to you, Davis. I should’ve thrown you out when you showed up today. I should’ve thrown you out a hundred times before then. I’m over this. Don’t come back to my house unless you’re here to see Lily. Don’t let yourself in. Don’t show up unannounced. Don’t think that you have a single right to comment on me or my life. If you can’t respect my boundaries, I’ll figure out a way to make you respect them. Go home, Davis, and figure your shit out.”

I walked inside and closed the door, ending the conversation and, hopefully, a chapter of my life where I let Davis get away with everything and anything to avoid hurting his feelings. I locked the door and took a moment to catch my breath before going back to the living room to spend a few minutes with the men who made me feel good and happy.

33

***Sophia***

Itried to fight a smile when I rejoined the guys, but it was obvious that they’d been looking out of the front window, keeping an eye on me. I sat on the arm of the couch and watched them. “At least Mrs. Johnson owns up to her spying.”

---