Page 27 of Even If the Sky is Falling
“Look at you, Miss the glass is half-empty. You’re making plans for the future.”
“You’re rubbing off on me.”
He waggled his brows again, and Maya slapped his arm playfully. Honestly, Maya hadn’t had this much fun with a man in a long time. No wonder she’d found a bit of optimism.
But really, this was a good plan. She wouldn’t even mind stocking his bottle next to hers. She picked it up, studying it, and something printed below the ingredients made her freeze.
“Um, Tarek, why does this say that Curry Junction is part of the Mizra Restaurant Group?”
He raised a brow. “Um, because it is?”
She frowned. “What’s the Mizra Restaurant Group?”
“That’s all the family restaurants. Shahi Tandoor is the biggest one. We have two locations. Downtown Chattanooga and one right outside town. Upscale Indian and Pakistani dining. My brother opened Café Mizra a few years ago. It’s in a more trendy part of town. Street food–inspired menu. And Curry Junction is my baby.”
“I thought the truck wasyours.”
He frowned, confused. “Well, it is. But it’s technically owned by the Mizra Group. I have full autonomy, though.”
“You didn’t tell me you worked for your father. I thought you were estranged.”
He shook his head. “I didn’t say that. I said we don’t really have a good personal relationship—which we don’t. But we do work together. He taught me everything I know about food service.”
Maya blinked.Shahi Tandoor, the upscale restaurant, would have been the one that he opened after abandoning the partnership with her father. It would have been her father’s dream.
Tarek wasn’testrangedfrom his family. He fucking worked with them.
Maya’s fists clenched. “I can’t believe you didn’t tell me this.”
Tarek shook his head. “I didn’t exactly hide it from you. And you said you didn’t want to talk business. Why is this so bad?”
“Because I don’t want asymbioticrelationship with the Mizra Restaurant Group! Don’t you get it, Tarek? All this—” she waved her hands at the Masala Girls shelves. “Me working my ass off to make Masala Girls a success. Working full-time at the call center and in my spare time mixing spices, making sauces and marketing, this is all for my dad. His dream was always to have his own restaurant, and he was going to achieve that with your father years ago. But then your dad pulled out of their partnership. So now Dad drives an airport taxi and gets yelled at by racist tourists daily. Thanks to your family.”
“Maya, look at me.”
She did. His face...those eyes...right now they were a little surprised, and a lot sad. And so, so handsome. How could she have fallen right back into the all-consuming crush she’d had all those years ago? No, that wasn’t entirely true. These were new feelings, and they were even stronger than the old ones. This wasreal.
“Maya,” he said. He took her hand and held it to his chest. “This is me. Not the Mizra Group.Tarek.I had nothing to do with the past.”
“I know,” she said softly.
His eyes never left hers. “My father told me your father didn’t want to move, and Dad saw more opportunities in Chattanooga than Atlanta.”
Maya shrugged. She’d known Dad hadn’t wanted to move, but Tarek’s dad didn’t have to abandon him. She shook her head, taking her other hand. “I’m sorry. I know it’s not you, but I can’t do this.”
He blinked. “Can’t do the symbiotic partnership, or the relationship?”
She shrugged. “Either. Both. What would your father say if he knew what we were doing an hour ago? What would mine say?”
He cringed. “Ew. We’re not going to tell our fathers about that, are we?”
Maya hated doing this to him. “Tarek, I can’t...won’t...do anything to threaten my goals. I’m sorry.” She understood how messy family was. She understood that he couldn’t be blamed for his father’s actions long ago. And his success, with his shiny food truck making so many people happy—Tarek deserved it.
But Maya and her father deserved success, too. What if Tarek’s dad somehow took Masala Girls from them after they entered this partnership? Or what if Tarek’s sauce outsold hers in her booth? Or what if Tarek stole her sauce recipe once she sold it to him?
Too much could go wrong. She couldn’t rely on a Mizra to make Masala Girls’ success happen. And she couldn’t break her father’s heart by being in a relationship with his rival’s son.
Tarek shook his head. “I don’t even know what to say. I know the last eleven hours have been a pressure cooker, but this wasreal. I didn’t imagine that.” He ran his hand through his hair and sighed. “And now you’re walking away without even trying. But I’m not going to force something that you don’t want. Goodbye, Maya.”
