"Hey, guys, don't break Mama." Olivia laughed when she looked up from where she stood cooking breakfast, dressed for work with her badge clipped to her belt and her gun strapped to her hip, when Alex walked into the kitchen with Noah hanging on her back, Jessie tucked under her arm facing backwards with her tiny jean-clad bottom facing forward, and Billie clinging to her leg. All three children giggled wildly as Mama's pesky fingers searched for their tickle spots. Jessie squealed happily as Mama turned her upside down and tickled her belly.
"Me too, Mama, me too!" Billie pleaded. Alex carefully turned Jessie right side up and placed her on her feet before indulgently picking Billie up and turning her upside down. The upside down game was a huge hit among all three children, regardless of which mother was playing with them.
"Mommy, Mama said Uncle Rafa gets to take us to school today!" Noah announced as he jumped down from Alex's back to escape her tickling fingers and went to the table to inspect breakfast and try to covertly snatch a piece of bacon. Jessie ran into Mommy's arms for protection from Mama's fingers, only to be attacked by Mommy's pesky fingers.
"That's right, Uncle Rafa is going to take you and Jessie to school and Billie to daycare this morning, and Lucy is going to pick all of you up this afternoon." Olivia explained patiently, "Now I need three little bottoms sitting down properly at the table for breakfast. Mama and I don't want any of our babies leaving this apartment with an empty belly."
"Mama, dids we breaks you?" Billie asked with concern. Alex smiled down at her youngest baby.
"No, lovey, you didn't. Mama and Mommy are pretty much unbreakable. Let's obey Mommy like a good girl and go to the table." Alex gently took Billie's hand and guided her to her place at the table.
"Buddy, sit down the right way." Olivia gave Noah's bottom a gentle pat when she noticed that he was kneeling up backwards in his chair.
By the time Rafael arrived to take the children to their intended destinations, breakfast was over and had been cleaned up. With their backpacks and lunchboxes in hand, the children chattered and giggled amongst themselves. Noah had trouble figuring out the zipper on his green jacket and Olivia bent down to help him.
"Thanks for taking them today, Rafa. You're a lifesaver." Alex smiled.
"It's no problem, that's what Uncles are for. The school and the daycare are both on my way to the courthouse and I don't need to be there for another two hours." Rafael replied.
"He doesn't look like candy." Jessie observed, poking Rafael's hand and inspecting his fingers.
"Come here, baby, you've got your shoes on the wrong feet." Alex picked Jessie up.
There were hugs and kisses all around as the children were assured that they were very loved and gently reminded to behave for their teachers. Noah took this reminder most seriously, having gotten in trouble just last week for misbehaving at school and getting his prized stuffed elephant taken away for three days as a consequence, which had resulted in three days of crying at bedtime, but Alex and Olivia held firm and they were confident that their oldest baby had learned an important lesson. Finally, the door closed and both women breathed sighs of relief as their children were shepherded out into the world in the capable hands of Rafael Barba. Olivia and Alex smiled at each other and high-fived.
"I had better leave or I am going to be late. Do you have any exciting plans for your day off?" Olivia inquired as she slipped into her leather jacket.
"I have court first thing tomorrow morning, so I'll mostly be preparing for that. I might go get a manicure later."
"Oh, here, this one's on me. Get yourself one of those cappuccinos you love so much while you're downtown." Olivia reached into her wallet and handed Alex enough cash to cover a manicure and a trip to her favorite coffee shop, giving her a kiss to her forehead, nose, and lips.
"Thanks." Alex smiled, leaning into the affection.
"You deserve a treat." Olivia winked, "Be a good girl today, I love you."
"I love you too." Alex replied.
Olivia headed off to work and Alex was left in the apartment alone with her thoughts. With guilt bubbling up in the pit of her stomach, she looked down at the wad of cash in her hand, thinking about Olivia's words and knowing that she really didn't deserve a treat, but knowing that she deserved something else entirely. Alex tried to ignore the guilt and sat down to focus on preparing for court the next morning.
Several hours later, Olivia let herself into the apartment and was confused to be greeted by the unmistakable sounds of a spanking in progress, a wooden implement connecting to bare flesh. She kicked her shoes off and walked to the bedroom where she was greeted by the sight of Alex kneeling on all fours on the bed with her jeans and panties pulled down, spanking her own bottom with the small, heavy, six-holed paddle. Alex was sobbing and her crimson bottom was in quite a state, with bruised sit-spots and a crop of blisters on both cheeks.
"Chocolate." Olivia spoke Alex's safeword as she walked over and took the paddle out of Alex's hand before the next stroke fell. Alex was startled by Olivia's presence, having been too busy sobbing to hear her arrive home. Olivia gently guided Alex to lie down on the bed on her belly with her head resting comfortably on a pillow, "I am going to take a shower and change my clothes and put my things away. While I do that, you are going to lie here and rest. When I am done, you can tell me everything you need to tell me, no secrets kept. Do you understand?"
"Yes, Ma'am." Alex sobbed.
"Good girl. Just rest and think about what you need to tell me, I expect nothing but the truth." Olivia bent down to kiss Alex's temple.
Olivia emerged from the shower feeling refreshed, but still thoroughly confused by her wife's behavior. It was completely obvious that Alex was feeling guilty over something and was trying to punish herself, but Olivia was concerned by the state of Alex's bottom and was grateful that she had been home to intervene when she did so that Alex didn't cause herself any permanent harm; with proper arnica application, the bruises and blisters would be thoroughly healed in a day or two. When Olivia walked back into the bedroom dressed casually with her hair pulled back in a ponytail, she found Alex still lying on the bed on her belly exactly where she had left her, still crying but no longer sobbing. Olivia reached into the bedside table drawer to retrieve the arnica and sat down beside Alex to gently doctor her bottom.
"I don't deserve lotion. I'm a terrible mother." Alex wept miserably.
"Well, I don't know who told you that lie, but when I find out I am going to take my belt to them for telling you such things." Olivia replied.
When Olivia finished doctoring Alex's bottom, she arranged them so that they were both comfortable on the bed, sitting with her back against the headboard and Alex cuddled safely in her arms.
"Okay, I am right here to listen whenever you are ready to talk to me." Olivia gently stroked Alex's long blonde hair.
"I hurt Jessie." Alex admitted through her tears.
"What did you do to her?" Olivia asked, now even more confused. Alex rarely even raised her voice to the children, let alone put her hands on them in anger.
"Yesterday when I took her to her doctor appointment, she pulled away from me and ran into the street. I grabbed her and popped her bottom, and this morning while I was getting the kids dressed I found a bruise on her arm where I grabbed her."
"Sweetheart, Jessie is fine. When Lucy brings the kids home, I will take a look at her arm, but you did absolutely nothing wrong. I would rather have you pop her little bottom for running in the street than have to attend her funeral after she got hit by a car. I saw the way you guys were playing this morning, that little girl adores you. You have no reason whatsoever to feel guilty. And even if you did deserve to be punished, which you don't, you were far too hard on yourself. You told me that you have court tomorrow, and I don't envy you having to sit down on this bottom of yours, poor baby. Why didn't you come to me yesterday and talk to me about this?"
"I didn't want you to leave me and take them away from me." Alex choked on a sob, and Olivia's heart broke.
"Oh, my sweet angel, that will never happen. I love you so much, we can get through any difficulty we face as long as we communicate. I will never leave you. Even if we were living in some crazy parallel universe and something did happen between us, I would never take the kids away from you. You are such a wonderful Mama, the only thing you did yesterday was protect Jessie, you didn't abuse her in any way."
"Are you sure?" Alex whimpered.
"Hey, are you questioning my judgment, young lady?" Olivia teased, lightly tickling Alex's side and getting a tiny giggle out of the blonde.
"No, Ma'am. I just feel so awful, and when I saw the bruise this morning I freaked out."
"Judging by this backside of yours, I think 'freaked out' is an understatement. Whose job is it to decide when you need to be punished?"
"It's yours, Ma'am."
"Good girl. Remember that the next time you are unsure of yourself with the kids, and come talk to me before the guilt gets the best of you."
"Are you going to punish me for taking your authority over me into my own hands?" Alex asked.
"I am certainly not going to spank you, if that's what you're asking. Tomorrow after the kids are in bed, you can write lines." Olivia passed down a very light sentence, feeling that Alex's blistered and bruised bottom was punishment enough.
"Yes, Ma'am." Alex knew full well that Olivia's heart wasn't really in the punishment, but she appreciated the consistency.
"I'll give you more arnica tonight before bed, and more before work tomorrow. You should be fine by Thursday morning. I'm guessing you didn't get your manicure and latte today?" Olivia glanced down at Alex's nails.
"No, I felt too guilty. I left the money on top of the microwave."
"Well then, young lady, as part of your punishment for taking my authority into your own hands, you are going to go get a manicure and a latte on Saturday while I watch the kids." Olivia teased.
"If that's the price I must pay, then I must pay." Alex giggled.
The two women sat cuddling in the peaceful silence until Alex's belly called for attention and Olivia kissed her forehead.
"Lucy will be here with the kids soon. Let's put you in some sweatpants to protect your bottom, and then we can go figure out what we are going to have for dinner. Preferably something green, they've had mac and cheese three times this week."
"You made it for them, pushover." Alex teased, and laughed as Olivia tickled her.
"You're right, that was completely my fault." Olivia admitted.
After dinner, Jessie ran into Olivia's arms when she heard Olivia call her name.
"Hi, Mommy!" Jessie smiled happily.
"Hi, sweetie. Mommy and Mama just need to take a quick look at your arm." Olivia smiled as she picked Jessie up, kissed her forehead, and gently rolled up her sleeve. Alex was relieved to find that what she had perceived as a big bruise was in reality very small and would be thoroughly healed in the next day or two.
"Mama saved me from the cars." Jessie explained.
"I heard. No more running away from Mama, okay? Mommy and Mama love you so much and we don't want our sweet baby girl to get hurt." Olivia gently tapped Jessie on the nose.
"Yes, Mommy." Jessie agreed.
"That's my good girl. Now, my babies all need baths tonight. Who wants to go first?"
After all three children were bathed and changed into their pajamas for the evening, Alex carried Noah into the living room and set him down on his feet to let him play on the floor with his sisters, then she went over to sit on the couch and snuggle into Olivia's arms. The children giggled happily while the two women sat nearby watching over them.