Meaning
A tender plea or trusting request made to a romantic partner — to be gentle with one's feelings and not cause hurt. To say 'tek care a mi heart' is to lay bare one's vulnerability, handing over one's affection into another's keeping and asking that it be treated softly. It is the language of love at its most exposed, spoken by someone giving themselves over to another and trusting them not to wound, and it belongs to the sweet, earnest register of Jamaican romance and love song.
Examples
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Mi a give yuh mi love, so tek care a mi heart.
I'm giving you my love, so take care of my heart.
'a give' is the continuous marker before the verb.
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If yuh waan mi fi trus yuh, tek care a mi heart.
If you want me to trust you, take care of my heart.
'fi trus' uses 'fi' for 'to'.
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Mi did hurt before, so please tek care a mi heart dis time.
I've been hurt before, so please take care of my heart this time.
'did hurt' marks completed past; 'dis' = this.
Origin
A calque built entirely from English words ('take care of my heart') reshaped by Patois phonology: 'take' becomes 'tek' and 'of' becomes the reduced particle 'a'.
How it’s used
Heartfelt and sincere, common in love talk, letters, and song lyrics. Because it exposes vulnerability, it is said only to someone the speaker genuinely trusts; used casually or sarcastically it can sound mocking.