Always

32.

Spencer James

*a few days later*

"You got it smellin' good in here!" Spencer said as he opened the fridge to grab a water bottle. "How you doin' this mornin' Mrs. Baker?" he inquired as he entered the Baker kitchen. The smell of turkey bacon engulfed his nostrils, causing his stomach to growl. 

"I'm doing well this morning Spencer, thank you for asking" Mrs. Baker smiled as she sipped her coffee. "Breakfast should be ready in about five minutes. I sent Jordan upstairs to get the babies up and ready. I know it's hard for you and Liv to raise two babies under two. So Jordan and I try to do what we can to help you both" she said and now it was Spencer's turn to smile.

"Wow, Mrs. B. There ain't enough words to express how appreciative I am, for real" Spencer said as he sipped his water. "You've done more than enough for my kids and I. You ain't have to but you did" he continued.

"Spencer you're family" Laura stated matter of factly. "We go above and beyond for all of you" she said.

"Thank you" Spencer smiled and Laura nodded her head.

"She's outside in the backyard" Laura said, referring to Olivia. Spencer then thanked her once again as he exited the kitchen.

He observed the array of flowers in the garden as he stood at the entrance of the back door. Spencer's eyes carefully scanned the backyard as he searched for Olivia. He smiled as he'd seen her standing next to the pool. Spencer stepped onto the concrete, closing the sliding door behind him.

"Baby!" he called out and Olivia jumped at the sound of his voice. "What chu' doin' out here?" he inquired as he approached her.

"You scared me!" Olivia said as she playfully punched his arm. "I just came out here for some fresh air" she smiled as Spencer placed his hands on her waist.

 "You aight?" he questioned as he could tell her mood was slightly off.

"I've had a few things on my mind but nothing too major" she told him. "Did you sleep okay last night?" she inquired.

"What's on your mind?" he asked, ignoring her question. "Whatever it is...you can tell me" he said.

"It's nothing I haven't voiced to you this past week. I just have my concerns about this whole Mexico trip with Khalil. The one that you're not going on by the way" she said and Spencer chuckled. "And I've been thinking about reaching out to Quinten" she revealed and he furrowed his eyebrows.

"Reach out to that nigga for what?" he questioned, removing his hands from her waist. "There should be no reason he should even be a thought" he told her.

"Spencer...I didn't like how things ended between the two of you the other day. I'm not looking to be his friend...I just want to make sure things are peaceful" Olivia told him. "You threatened him and-"

"How did you expect me to react?" he questioned. "Especially after you told him to leave you alone and he still showed up? You thought I was finna let shit slide? The nigga came to our house, Liv" he raised his voice and she frowned.

"Lower your voice! No need to get all worked up about it. I'm just saying it could have been handled differently, Spencer" Olivia said. "For my peace of mind and sanity...I just think it's best to approach the situation in a more...mature way" she continued.

"I don't want you talkin' to that nigga" he expressed. "But it seems that's what's goin' to happen anyway...even after I've already voiced my concern to you" he sighed in frustration.

"Spencer-"

"Nah it's cool" he shrugged. "You gon' do what you want, right? So I'ma do what I want" he said and she furrowed her eyebrows.