Chapter Ten. #2
The soft mauve pink, cream, and deep red roses had been arranged beautifully by the florist, with small sprigs of greenery filling the spaces between them. Nivéa’s entire face lit up as she accepted the bouquet and lifted it to her nose.
“They’re so beautiful.” She said, inhaling the sweet scent.
“So are you, ma. My apologies about the other night.”
“I told you, it’s okay.”
“Nah, it’s not okay. I never want you to see me bringing the streets into our home like that. I fucked up.”
“I hear you. But you’re human, and you’re entitled to break sometimes. You carry a lot, baby.”
Grateful for her understanding, Crown leaned over the chair and pressed his lips against her forehead repeatedly, pouring his affection into each kiss to show her how much she meant to him.
Then he started teasing her, moving from her temple to her cheek and then the bridge of her nose.
He kept it up until laughter bubbled from Nivéa, making her turn her face away from the tickle of his beard.
“Ahmad, stop.” She laughed yet tilted her chin up for the kiss he placed on her mouth.
Crown let the kiss linger, his fingers grazing lightly along the side of her neck. “Missed the shit outta you, baby.”
“You saw me this morning, nigga.”
“Fuck that mean? I still missed yo’ lil ass.”
“I’m just kiddin’. You know I missed you, too.”
They shared a smile as Crown's gaze lowered to her stomach.
Gently, he moved the bouquet from her hands, placing it alongside his hard hat on the desk before kneeling in front of her.
He rested one palm on her belly and pressed a slow, tender kiss against it, treating it as if it were already big and round.
It had become a habit that Nivéa thought was so cute.
He took his time, as if the baby inside could somehow feel his affection through her skin.
“Sup up in there?” He whispered. “You giving your mama trouble, too?”
Nivéa rested her hand against the back of his head as she laughed. “Nope. Just that one there.” She pointed toward Nyla, who had spat the pacifier halfway from her mouth.
Crown chuckled as his attention dropped lower and landed on Nivéa’s feet. The smile quickly left his face as he noticed the skin gathered around the straps of her house shoes.
“Your ankles swollen, ma.”
Nivéa followed his gaze and shrugged as if it were nothing. “I know. I’ve been on my feet most of the day.”
“You supposed to be taking it easy.”
“I was working, baby. I have that order for the conference to get done and had to walk her little fussy self around damn near every hour.”
Crown gave a small nod as he removed her house shoe, understanding how she had ended up that way even if he didn’t like it.
He placed one hand beneath her calf and carefully lifted her foot onto his chest. His fingertips moved over the swollen area, testing the puffiness with a gentle press as he examined the marks her shoes had left behind.
He made a mental note to give her a long foot massage later in bed.
For now, he would do what he could to relieve some pressure.
“You should’ve called me.”
“And told you what? Stop what you’re doing and come fold and pack some T-shirts?”
“If that’s what you needed.”
Nivéa smiled as something warm settled in her chest. There was never any hesitation in his responses regarding her; he didn’t play about her.
Crown lowered his head and kissed one swollen ankle, then shifted to the other. It was such a small gesture, but it touched Nivèa more than the roses. He never treated the things she carried as if they mattered less than his responsibilities.
“Why the change?” Nivéa asked, refocusing on his clothes. “You had to go by the office?”
“Yeah. Had to walk a site and meet with a client real quick.”
“Everything okay?”
“The crew found some unexpected water seepage while they were excavating beside the building.”
Nivéa tilted her head, trying to understand. Crown had explained parts of his work before, but anything involving construction still sounded complicated to her.
“What does that mean exactly?”
“They found groundwater where the plans didn’t account for it. If we kept going with the foundation as originally designed, we could end up with drainage and structural issues later.”
Her face twisted with concern. “So, what do you have to do?”
“The engineers reviewed the site conditions and ran some new calculations.
They decided we needed additional drainage and some reinforcement around that section of the foundation.
I had to adjust the design to accommodate it, then sit down with the client and explain why the costs and timeline were changing before we could move forward.
Nivéa was impressed by how easily he switched from one world to the next.
“Seems like a lot.”
Crown shrugged. “It happens. The initial assessments didn’t catch it.”
“How did your client take it?”
“He wasn’t happy about the extra costs or the delay, but I told him it’s better to deal with it now than have a problem with the foundation later. Once I showed him the reports and explained what we needed to do, that nigga got it.”
“Mm, makes sense.”
Nivéa closed her eyes as he worked his hands along her calves, gently rubbing away some of the soreness that had settled there. Crown worked hard on both until she released a deep, satisfying breath. She needed this more than she realized.
“I’ll give you another one tonight.” He promised, kissing her foot.
“Okay. Remember, we have that doctor’s appointment in the morning at 11. Do you think we can still make it, or should I reschedule?”
“Nah, we’re going to that one.”
“You sure, baby? I know you have a lot going on right now.”
“I’m positive.”
“Okay.”
When he finished tending to Nivéa, Crown moved toward Nyla’s bouncer and bent over it to unbuckle her.
He slipped one large hand beneath her head and the other beneath her body, lifting her against him.
Nyla released one final complaint as Crown settled her against his chest, supporting her neck with his palm while rubbing the length of her back.
She quieted almost instantly, her tiny body relaxing against him as if she recognized his touch and knew she was safe.
Crown leaned over and kissed Nivéa once more before walking out of the room with Nyla, leaving her to finish up in peace.
Nyla would chill with him while he ate and watched television.
He couldn’t remember the last time he had sat in his theater room without his phone ringing or another problem waiting to be handled.
But that night, he was determined to sit down, kick his feet up, hold his daughter, and enjoy a little normalcy despite all the chaos surrounding him.
Crown had just dropped about ten niggas and sat through two meetings, one at the clubhouse and another at his firm. He deserved some downtime.
∞∞∞
Later that evening, once Nyla fell asleep, Crown and Nivéa watched all their favorite classics: Poetic Justice, Boyz n the Hood, Menace II Society, The Wood, and Love Jones, while he massaged her legs.
Crown believed that as a husband, he owed his wife intimacy that wasn’t just about sex.
She deserved dates, compliments, flowers, and moments where he simply just loved on her.
She took care of him, their home, and their baby while hustling to make her own money.
Because of all that, she deserved to be catered to, too.
He understood that he had married a human being, not a fucking robot.
Despite his chaotic ass day, the night ended on some chill shit, bringing genuine smiles to both of their faces.
They chatted between movies until Crown grew quiet, sipping from the double Styrofoam cup.
Nivéa had encouraged him to relax, unwind, and just be free for once.
So, he poured the last of his stash, fully embracing the moment.
“You okay over there? You getting sleepy on me?” Nivéa asked.
“Nah, not sleepy yet. Just got some heavy shit on my mind.”
“What’s that? Care to share?”
Crown hesitated for a moment before letting it out. “I need to change my life around. This shit I’m doing can’t earn a nigga a seat in heaven, ma.”
Nivéa tried her best not to laugh. It wasn’t a joking matter, but the look on his face made her want to crack up.
“Jesus, baby. What all are you doing?”
Crown glanced at her, sharing a knowing look before taking another sip from his cup.
She didn’t know half of the work he’d been putting in on those streets.
That damn syrup had stilled him, forcing him to sit with himself.
He went down memory lane, recalling he’d also just lost seven brothers in one day.
He didn’t even want to share that part with his wife.
“That bad, huh?” Nivéa reached over, rubbing his face.
Crown nodded.
“You just have to put in the work, baby. He’s merciful.”
“I hear you.”
“In the meantime, you’re perfect in my eyes. That’s gotta count for something, right?”
“Shit, counts a lot. With your love and approval, a nigga can cope.”
Nivéa smiled. “Awe, I love you.”
“I love you too.”
“How much?”
“More than I can put into words.”
“When did you feel it?”
“Feel I loved you?”
“Yes, and why?”
Nivéa was still learning Crown, taking moments like this to study everything about their journey.
“It was plenty of moments.”
Nivéa’s perfectly arched brows knitted in curiosity.
“The night you stopped fuckin’ wit me, I realized losing you wouldn’t just hurt me…
it would take a piece of my heart with you.
Then the shit with yo’ ex came up. I realized then I cared about you deeply because I was willing to put myself between you and anything that wanted to hurt you.
Go to war with the whole Hills ’bout you. ”
Crown looked away, gazing at the fireplace. Nivéa watched him closely as he pointed to it, torn between his heartfelt speech and the way the diamonds on his pinky finger danced. He looked so good.