I flipped Ava off when Lily wasn’t looking and went to the front door. I was half-expecting Mrs. Johnson to be standing there with more complaints so when the doorknob twisted and the door opened before I got to it, I was getting ready to tell her off. Instead, my ex-husband was letting himself into my house, a house we’d never once shared together.
“What the hell, Davis?” I let out an exasperated sigh. “You can’t just let yourself into my house.”
Davis ran his hand through his short hair and smiled at me. He had a charming smile and eyes that had once won me over but right then, that smile made me want to punch him. “The door was unlocked.”
I stiffened when he wrapped his arms around me and hugged me too tight. “Davis, that isn’t… Okay, that’s enough hugging.”
He pulled back enough to kiss me on my forehead and then looked me up and down. “You look good.”
I pulled away from him. “Why are you here?”
“I wanted to stop by and see Lily.” He moved around me to make his way to the dining room. “Seeing you is an added bonus for sure, though.”
I trailed behind him, considering the pros and cons of kicking his knees out from under him, but by the time I caught up to him, he had Lily in his arms already. I sat down and shared a look with Ava. “Look who let himself in.”
Milo did a handshake with Davis that lasted too long and made me feel like punching Milo, too. “Welcome, D-Man. How’s it hanging?”
Davis sat in Lily’s seat with her in his lap and rested his arm on the back of my chair. “Better now that I’m seeing my girls.”
Ava snorted. “Not your girls, but okay.”
“I wasn’t talking about you, Ava.” Davis twirled a piece of my hair and laughed when I swatted his hand away. “There’s my feisty girl.”
“Dad, guess what?” Lily clutched John Cena and slurped at her milk. “Mom has boyfriends!”
Davis’ arm dropped from behind me and I could feel his stare burning into my face. “What’s that?”
Ava loved a chance to stick it to Davis so she leapt at the chance. “Oh, yeah. Soph has new boyfriends. She met them the other night. I still haven’t gotten all the details because they were too hot to tell all in one gossip session.”
I gulped at my water and looked at Milo, hoping he would get my silent message for him to control Ava’s mean side. He just smiled back at me, though, and shot me a thumbs up, completely unaware.
“I want to meet Mom’s boyfriends!” Lily spilled a mouthful of milk on John Cena and pouted. “Mom, John Cena spilled milk on himself.”
“If he starts to smell, he can go swimming in the washing machine again, sweetie.” I ran my hands through my hair andshoved everything behind my ears. “Have y’all seen that new Julia Roberts movie?”
“No, and neither have you.” Ava rolled her eyes at me and refocused on Davis. “I just think it’s so good that Soph is getting back out there.”
Davis set Lily down and stood up. I started to feel grateful that I wasn’t going to have to deal with one of his hour-long visits but then he gripped my elbow and tugged. “Walk me out?”
“Leaving already? Oh, poo.” Ava’s fake smile was slightly terrifying but as usual, Davis ignored her.
“I love you, Lily. I’ll see you this weekend, right?”
Lily looked up at me and pouted. She didn’t love the idea of going to Davis’s new house but once she got there, she always had a good time with her dad. “Love you, too.”
Davis gently tugged me outside and only stopped when we were next to his car. He turned to face me and frowned. “What’s going on, Soph?”
I frowned back at him and held up my hands. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“You have boyfriends?” He stepped into my space. “How long do I have to work to show you that I’m different now? Give me another chance, Sophia. If you’re dating again, date me.”
I pushed him away and shook my head. “Not this again. Please, Davis. We do this same song and dance every few months and my answer is never going to change.”
“Why not? We have a kid together. We had a whole life together, Soph. I love you. That’s never changed.” He wrapped me in a hug and held me even as I pushed him away. “We still have something.”
I pushed harder and walked a few feet away. “No. Listen to me, Davis. I don’t want to hurt your feelings, but you don’t listen. Wedidhave a whole life together and I would’ve stayed with you for the rest of my life, happiness be damned, but you cheated.I’m not mad at you anymore, but I’ll never trust you again and I don’t ever want to be with you again. You’re a great dad and you were always a good friend, but you were a shit husband. Every time you do this, you make me want to ban you from coming here. I like you having access to Lily, though, so don’t make me do it.”
He shoved his hands through his hair and gripped the back of his neck. “I’m sorry. How many times can I say I’m sorry? I would never do that to you again, Soph. Trust me when I say I’ve learned my lesson. I lost everything. I don’t sleep the same without you.”