Chapter Three #2
Crown was a protector; that much Nivéa had learned. But she also knew that he had a lot going on in his own world. She didn’t want to put more on his shoulders. And another part of her felt bad. She didn’t want to say she hated violence, only to turn around and want it when she was scared.
Nivéa didn’t want him to feel used when she needed him and discarded when she wanted peace. She was a fair girl, a good one with a heart of gold. She never wanted her needs or actions to be misconstrued. She was thinking that maybe she should just file a report and let the police handle it.
“I’ll tell you later. Right now, I just wanna take a hot bath and relax. I’m exhausted.”
Crown had questions and concerns about Boe, but he forced himself to grant her wishes and let it go for now. “Say less.”
“I need to change her first, though. Can you grab that bag for me?”
Crown nodded, grabbed the bag, and handed it to her. He sat back quietly as she changed Nyla and rocked her back to sleep. The moment the baby’s eyes fluttered shut, he tilted his head toward the stairs.
“Come on.”
Upstairs, he walked past his bedroom, and Nivéa slowed, confused. “Where are you going?” she asked.
Crown didn’t answer. He opened the door to the bedroom across from his and stepped inside.
When Nivéa followed, her breath caught hard in her chest. Fear still clung to her bones from the morning she’d had, but this overpowered that feeling.
She stood there, taking the room in piece by piece, her eyes moving slowly.
“When did you…how did you find the time?” Her voice failed her as tears spilled over.
Crown stepped closer, brushing the tears from her face like it was second nature.
“I did it the day after y’all left. Having you both here did something for me. I wanted y’all here as much as I could get you to come, and I wanted her to be comfortable. It was supposed to be a surprise. I was gon’ show you when we got here after the club. But shit went left.”
Nivéa looked Crown in the eyes, and a smile stretched across her face.
Beneath the hard exterior, she could see the hurt sitting right there in his gaze.
Plain as day. He missed her, too. Everything he had said to her before now felt true.
He wasn’t just talking; he wanted something real.
Something solid. And more than that, he wanted to build it with her.
Crown showed it in his actions. In a matter of weeks, he’d done more for her than Boe had managed in four years.
That realization hit her hard. This was what she had missed most about him.
What had kept her up late at night after they split, staring at her phone, fighting the urge to call and give him another chance.
His presence. His care. The way he moved with purpose.
It was never just about his exterior or his money.
It was what lived beneath it. The steadiness.
The protection. The way he made her feel chosen.
Nivéa broke eye contact, her vision glossy as she looked around the room again.
It was beautiful. Pastel tones filled the space, almost identical to the nursery she’d built back home.
Every detail screamed he had paid attention.
Nyla’s unicorn theme, the quality of the furniture, and the way everything flowed together also told her this wasn’t thrown together. This was intentional.
At her place, she’d made her money stretch. She caught sales at several different stores, making things work and look nice with what she could afford. This room looked different…like luxury, like a man who spared no expense when it came to her child.
She gently laid Nyla into the crib, smoothing the blanket before stepping farther into the room.
When she reached the walk-in closet, the tears came harder.
Baby items were lined up on the shelves, neatly organized.
Clothes crowded the hangers, tags still attached.
Too many. Far more outfits than there were days before Nyla would outgrow them.
She brushed her fingers over one of the tags and recognized the boutique immediately, the same one she loved at the mall when he took her shopping.
Despite the tears, another smile found her lips.
“This is so beautiful. You have no idea what this means to me.”
Nivéa turned to Crown, wrapping her arms around his neck before she could catch herself. Everything she’d been holding in while missing him finally spilled over. “You’re the most beautiful man I’ve ever known, Ahmad. Inside and out.”
You would’ve thought Crown had handed her a million dollars by the way she cried, but what he gave her meant more than money ever could. He kept showing up and showing out for her and Nyla. And that was all she had ever wanted in a man, someone who was down for her.
Crown leaned down, his mouth brushing her ear. “It’s more where that came from. My closet already got shit in it for you too.”
Nivéa stilled in his arms.
“Y’all stayin’ here with me until it’s safe, until I handle it. And make no mistake, I will handle it, ma.”