Page 39 of Crown: Phase 3
“Aight, then. Say less.”
Crown chuckled, finding everything she did adorable. So much so, he considered telling Nivéa he’d changed his mind and wanted a whole football team of kids. He could relive this stage of their lives over and over again. When the milk was gone, he removed the bottle, patted Nyla’s back, and began to burp her. This shit was second nature to him now. She made spit bubbles until she fell asleep.
“Okay, I’m finally done, so we can head out.” Nivéa announced her presence as she slid in her diamond earring.
“You look beautiful.” Crown told her, taking in her strapless burgundy dress.
“Thank you.” She leaned down to kiss his cheek and ran a hand over Nyla’s hair. “She done fell back to sleep and knocked this damn bow off.”
“Yeah, you know how she do. It’s all good. I got her.”
“Yeah, I see. Look at you, Daddy. You even packed her bottles.” Nivéa glanced at the stuffed diaper bag and noticed he had used the milk storage bags to refill each one, just like she’d shown him.
With ease, Crown placed Nyla in her carrier, adjusting her bow headband before buckling her in. When he finished, he stood and pulled Nivéa into his arms.
“Let me show you something before we head out.”
“Okay,” Nivéa said, kissing his lips and following him.
Crown took her on what felt like a journey through the expansive home. At the back of the house, they reached a beautifully designed wine cellar, its shelves lined with bottles that gleamed under soft, ambient lighting.
It wasn’t anything Nivéa hadn’t already seen before, but then Crown moved to a section of the wall that appeared ordinary. Using a remote he’d retrieved from his pocket, he made the wall move, revealing a steel door to a concealed room. He then put the code into the mount on the wall to gain access.
“You see what I put?” He asked, glancing back at her to see if she had caught the code.
“Yeah, your grandmother’s birthday, right?” Nivéa recalled their many deep conversations about family and legacy.
“See, that’s why I made you my wife.” Crown kissed her forehead.
Inside the concealed room, the motion lights turned on automatically, revealing stacks of cash neatly arranged alongside a few of his registered firearms. In the upper corners on both sides were cameras, recording every angle.
“What the he—” Nivéa’s voice cut off as she looked around in awe. “Ahmad, this is a lot of fucking money.”
“It’s not even half of what I got put aside. This is just one of my stashes. We will get to the rest soon, hopefully. If not, mymama knows where they are. She will let you know. You my wife now, so it’s time you know where everything’s at…just in case.”
Crown would never voice it to her, but every time he went to re-up or do business with someone new, the risks loomed even larger than before. His life, his freedom…everything was on the line. He had done his due diligence on Elijah Porter, but the street nigga in him wouldn’t allow him just to trust wholeheartedly. He wanted her to be prepared just in case anything went wrong that day.
But he didn’t have to state the obvious; Nivéa sensed his worry. “Oh no. Don’t you go talking like that right before our reception, nigga.”
“Nivéa.”
“You ain’t been talking like that to me. I don’t like it.”
“I know you don’t.” He smirked, wrapping his arm around her neck, grounding her.
They stayed like that for a moment, lost in each other. Crown shook his head as he looked down at her, realizing you didn’t truly see the rot in this world until you were protecting something pure from it. The monster belonged to the streets, but the man belonged to her. He loved her with every fiber of his being, wanting nothing more than to protect and take care of her.
“Listen, baby. I always plan to make it back to y’all. You know this. But this is just in case. You’ve been added to all my accounts, too. Here.” He handed her a bunch of cards from his pocket.
“More cards?”
“More.”
Nivéa fell silent as she examined each card. She realized these had her actual name on them. The other two he had given her in the past had his.
“How did you get those folks to add my name to these accounts? Did you go snoopin’ through my shit and steal my information?”
“Maybe” Crown winked. “It’s my job to know everything about you. You my wife.” He tapped her ring that sparkled naturally, licking his lips. The diamonds hit so hard that she didn’t even need any lighting.
