Page 27 of Contract With A G

She looked over her shoulder and then turned back toward me.

“Kind of. I was just back there giving my grandma a bath.”

“Oh. How long is that going to take you?”

“Not too much longer. I’m almost done,” she replied.

“So, can I come in and wait for you to be done.”

“Yeah, sure. Come in.” She stepped back from the door.

I walked into the house behind her and took a seat on the couch in the same spot I had sat last time. It was quiet in here, with the TV playing low somewhere in the background. I could hear Toya moving around down the hallway, talking to who I’m guessing is her grandma.

I leaned back on the couch and looked around the living room, spotting pictures of her and her brother plastered on the walls. The same young dude Duke shot and killed for potentially shooting his daughter.

I wasn’t too hard not to feel guilt sometimes, and I wasn’t soft enough to say the young boy Brice didn’t deserve what happened to him. My niece will probably never be the same again, and where I don’t know Brice pulled the trigger, I don’t know that he didn’t, and that was enough for me to live with it.

About ten minutes went by, and I sat alone until Toya came back into the living room. She ran her hand over her fuzzy ass ponytail and wiped the built up sweat off her forehead.

“Hey, I’m sorry to keep you waiting out here. I didn’t expect you.”

“Oh, you good?” I replied.

“Grandma, all good?”

“Yeah.” She let out a tired breath.

“I swear, I never get a break from that. It’s a full time job,” she replied.

“So, it’s just you here looking out for her?”

“Yeah. I’m the only family left that’s really close with her. My little brother Brice used to help out with her a lot before.” She paused.

“Well, before he died.”

The way she said it made it seem like the words physically pained her, but I got how she felt. That’s the same way I felt talking about my mother, or my homie Flats. Shit, I’m sure I’ll feel that same way too when Pops passes away.

“It's good that you’re helping her out. I’m sure she appreciates it.”

Toya laughed through her nose like I had cracked a joke.

“Yeah, she does. Even though she crucifies me about stuff like if her bath water is too hot or too cold. That's my old lady though.”

She laughed to herself.

“Yeah, my grandma is the same. Picky as hell about shit.”

“It be the smallest shit too.” She replied, and there was a brief pause between us before I cut to the chase.

“I came over here to see if you wanted to go get your house in order so you can be comfortable during the pregnancy. That's if you're able to get out right now with your grandma and all.”

“Oh, grandma? She's fine. She is on her way to sleep now. What kind of things did you want to handle, Caine?”

“You will see. Just go put on some clothes, and we can roll.”

Toya looked at me for a second like she was trying to figure out what I had up my sleeve, but she didn’t ask any questions.

She disappeared down the hallway to change, and once she was ready, we headed out to JJ’s appliance store.