“You know, all you ever did was take from me. Take and take and take. That’s all I know from you. You know what most girls get from a nigga who moves weight? A lavish home, a nice car, something to make the bullshit worth it. What did you give me that's worth talking about? Hm, Borris? Nothing.” She found herself venting.
“Is that what this shit about? I bought for you and paid ya bills when I could, but a nigga wasn’t rich. I had my people to look out for, too. You know that. I carried them niggas on my back.”
“This ain’t just about money and materialistic shit. This is about me never coming first. This is about you never being good to me in any way. You take and take and don’t give back. Not love. Not effort. Not a gotdamn thing. Now here you go again.”
“Bro, I don’t have time for this shit right now.”
“I never asked you to make time,” Nivéa retorted, her voice cold as ice. “I asked you to leave me the fuck alone.I asked youto leave.” She pointed at the door. “Just go and take all your bullshit with you.”
Boe froze, not because he was thinking about leaving, but because her words hit him straight in the chest. He looked at her, really looked at her. He saw not just the woman in front of him, but the damage he’d left behind over the years. The tired eyes. The guarded posture. The hurt he had caused and pretended not to see. He knew she wasn’t lying. Every word she said held up a mirror to the flaws he had spent their entire relationship ignoring.
Nivéa was a good woman. A damn good one. The best thing that had ever crossed his path, and he knew he had fucked it up. The thought ate at him in a way he hated to admit, especially while he sat behind those bars. He had wanted to do right by her; he just never knew how. Nobody had taught him. He wasn’t raised with a man in the house to show him how to love or lead a woman.
Chaos raised Boe.
A single mama trying to stretch nothing across eight kids by four different men. Poverty. Noise. Survival mode. Out of all her sons, Boe was the only one no longer behind bars or dead. One brother got life in the system years ago. Another was killed. His baby brother was sitting in juvie right now, waiting for his own fate, and Boe had been paying for a lawyer until he got locked up again himself. His sisters leaned on him. Their kids leaned on him. Everybody had their hands out, needed something. Then there were the side chicks, the gambling, and the constant need to feel like the man. Tricking money, showing off just to feel big for a moment.
Somewhere along the way, Nivéa started coming last. Not because he didn’t love her, but because he knew she loved him for who he was, not for what he could provide. That made it easy to take her for granted. But if he could start over, Boe swore he’ddo better. He would stand on business, do right by her, and be the man she deserved instead of the mess standing in her living room.
He did adore her. He did love her…in his own twisted, fucked-up way. But it was too late to fix everything he had broken with her. Too much damage. Too many chances wasted. And with everything crashing down around him, love wasn’t on the list of things he could worry about. Survival came first. It always had. So, he snapped right back into that mindset.
“Nah, I’m not going nowhere yet. Whatever you got, I need it. So, stop fuckin’ around.” His expression hardened as desperation crept into his voice.
Nivéa felt her throat tighten, but her voice stayed steady. “I already told you no. What I have left is for bills. For me and Ny to survive. So what, you gon’ rob me for our last?”
Boe’s eyes shifted to Nyla for the first time since he entered the room. He studied her pretty face, warm brown skin, and beautiful curls. She looked just like her mama, but the small details were all him. She had his rich brown complexion, the shape of his eyes, and even those flat feet with no hint of an arch. A flicker of guilt crossed his face, then vanished. He didn’t even know how to be a father to her, if he was being honest.
“Did you hear what the fuck I said earlier? You must not have. This nigga Preach will kill all of us. You talking about surviving? This is surviving. Getting the fuck outta here.” He glanced back at Nivéa.
“I’ll take my chances. I suggest you do the same.”
Nivéa adjusted Nyla in her arms with one hand while edging her body protectively between her and Boe as he stepped closer. Too close. Her pulse skyrocketed as his brows suddenly furrowed, but she didn’t move. She held her ground as he stared down at her, taking his time. For a second, she wondered whatthe hell was going through his head, and why he was analyzing her.
“What the fuck is this on your neck?” He asked, rhetorically.
“None of your business.”
Boe dragged his tongue over his bottom lip, anger rising quickly as his eyes traced every hickey Crown had deliberately left behind. He spotted them when she shifted Nyla in her arms.
“So this why you been acting salty with me? You fuckin’ wit’ somebody else?”
He reached for her neck to get a better look, but Nivéa slapped his hand away instinctively.
“Again, not your business.”
“Yeah, aight,” he nodded, rage coursing through him. “You lucky I got bigger shit to deal with right now. But we gon’ circle back to that fasho.” He scanned the living room before locking his gaze back onto hers. “Where’s your phone?”
Nivéa stared at him, refusing to answer until he reached out aggressively again, trying to search her. “Boe, what the fuck?” she stammered, her free hand slapping his, trying to pry him away. “Stop!” she said frantically, clutching Nyla. “Stop. What the fuck?!”
“Then give me your muthafuckin’ phone. I’m not playing with you.” He pushed her, leaving her back at square one, unable to read him.
Fear gripped Nivéa as she scrambled to grab her phone from the couch, tucked beneath the blanket she had just been under, and handed it to him.
“Unlock that shit and open your bank app.” He ordered, a storm of emotions churning within him…fear, jealousy, anger. The realization that she had moved on and someone else had touched what he still believed belonged to him shattered any sensitivity he once had for her.
Nivéa swallowed the lump in her throat and complied. As soon as the Satin Hills Federal Bank app opened through face recognition, Boe snatched the phone from her hand.
Checking: $776.66
