Page 29 of Contract With A G

I laughed and shook my head.

“Nah, baby girl. You need to eat a little healthier than that.”

She looked over at me, confused.

“Have you ever eaten something like Canva before?”

“No, I actually haven’t.”

“Kharti put me on. You never ate there with her?”

She shook her head, laughing.

“No, sir, that place is expensive, and Kharti and me have two totally different lifestyles and always have.”

“What does that mean?”

“It means that, never mind, it’s nothing.”

“No, tell me. You can talk to me.”

“Well, let's just say that me and Kharti have always had a different way of thinking. I mean, it works for our friendship because we balance each other out. Whenever she would want stuff like that, I’d be okay with a McDouble from McDonald’s and a small fry.”

“And all that tells me is that you live within your means and that's a good thing. I’ve learned over the past year that Kharti never has, especially now.”

“Yeah, she’s always been a bougie girl, but she is a good person nonetheless, and I love her to death. So I put up with her bougie ways and correct her when she needs it.”

“Yeah, which is most of the time.”

I replied, and she laughed. I’m sure she knows I’m telling the truth.

“Well, anyway, let’s go get you some Cava. See if you like that.”

“Fine with me, let’s go.”

We drove to the restaurant, and as soon as we got out and opened the door, I could smell the food coming out of the door. This spot was busy as hell, with people lined up at the counter, some waiting on their orders and others already sitting down eating.

Once we made it to the counter, Toya looked up at the menu hanging overhead and scanned through all the different options.

I could tell by the look on her face that she was trying to figure out what the hell everything was.

“You see what you may want to get?”

“I mean, I’m a little confused by all the different options, I can’t lie. This is a lot more in depth than getting a burger and fries, that’s for sure.”

“How about I tell you what I like, and we can go from there.”

“Oh, so Kharti has you bougie too.”

I chuckled at her.

“I wouldn’t say that. I’m still a nigga who will bust down an Essex Chicken basket in a minute. I really just want our baby to be healthy and that starts with a healthy mama.”

I looked at her and she smiled, shyly, but she looked way more comfortable next to me.

As we moved down the line, I walked her through a few of the things I liked to get, explaining the different bowls, sauces, and toppings as we went. She looked over everything behind the glass, pointed at a few things, and asked me what they were.

The person making her bowl added everything we pointed out, and when she finished, she had yogurt sauce, salmon, pita chips, tomatoes, lettuce, and cucumbers.