Perfect by Design

1: Aaliyah James

Olivia
"So what exactly is this punishment you decided on?" Spencer asks beside me.

I roll over in the bed to face him, although he's too busy scrolling away on Aaliyah's Instagram page. He's not going to find anything. Our girl hasn't completely lost her mind.

"I told you already, Spence. Her car stays parked unless she's going to school, dance, or helping us with the kids."

"And you took her phone?" He asks.

"Well, no."

"And she got a lecture?"

"Uh, no?"

"Ah, I get it. We're going with the luxury punishment option." He teases.

"Shut up!" I playfully smack his arm. He turns to smile at me, and I lean in, brushing my lips against his.

"Oh, and I made her an appointment with my OBGYN to get her on birth control."

"Birth control?!" Spencer practically squeals. He stills beside me, and you'd think I just told him someone died or something.

"Teenagers have sex, Spence." I shrug.

"Not our teenager." He throws the covers off himself and moves to get out of bed. I quickly latch onto his arm, pulling him back down.

"I don't know if she's having sex, baby. Probably not, but it happens, and I'd rather her be safe than we become grandparents at the prime age of thirty-five. Don't worry; I'll talk to her."

"To be clear, will this be a real talk? Or will it look similar to your punishment methods?" He smirks at me, and I shove him. Of course, he barely budges.

I stare up at the ceiling, feeling the weight of each breath as my chest rises and falls. Spencer tugs me close, tucking my body into his. The way my heart is racing right now, I'd swear he could feel my heart beating through my clothes.

His lips press into my neck, pausing just over my pulse point.

"I'm scared too, baby. You're not alone in this."

"How did you—?"

"You're my best friend, little tiger. I know you."

I roll over, so we're face to face. My hand wanders to his cheek, and my thumb brushes across the stubble on his chin.

"I don't want to mess them up. How do we know we're doing it right?" I rest my forehead against his.

"We don't. And knowing us, we're probably doing it all wrong." A small chuckle escapes my lips. "The important thing is that we love them so much. They know that. We're trying, Olivia. That's all we can ask of ourselves, and that's all they expect of us. We're trying our best, and from where I'm standing, we've done a damn good job."

"I lost myself to a boy as a teenager, Spence. A boy whose last name was Adams, may I add. I just want to protect her. I don't want her ever to feel an ounce of the pain I felt."

"We're not going to be able to save her from everything, baby. Trust me; I'm still struggling to accept that."

"She's our baby. She's my little princess, no matter how big she gets."

"Well, that little princess doesn't need a superhero right now. She just needs her mom, and luckily for her, she's got the best one in the world." He kisses the top of my head. "Now, let's sleep before the gremlins wake up."

"Babe. You have to stop calling our kids gremlins."

He pretends to snore, and I laugh at his antics. I'm not sure how he did it, but my mind isn't racing anymore. I close my eyes and breathe in my husband until everything goes quiet.