Page 25 of Shooting his Shot

I laughed. "Is that your way of saying you are hungry?"

She giggled. "Yes! I am ready to stop for the night, and I'll start back tomorrow when you are on the road," she mumbled that last part.

Every time I had to travel for a game, it seemed like Avani had smart remarks to say. It had me wondering what was running through her mind. I gifted her the Range Rover nearly a month ago, and I thought we were good, but whenever we were out, she tensed up or had an attitude with me when a woman approached me. I didn't know what the hell her problem was, but I didn't know what else to tell her. If I kept saying the same thing, I was going to lose my shit, and I didn't want to blow up on her.

"I thought you were going with me?"

Avani frowned her face up with a shake of her head. "Nah, I think I'll stay home. I don't have time to hear those women calling your name, plus saying what they want to do to you. No, I'll end up snapping."

I clenched my jaw muscles together, trying not to lose my temper.

"Man, fuck them girls. I told you plenty of times that you have nothing to worry about. It's like you don't trust me, and you know how I feel about that." I was trying not to get angry about it, but she was pushing me to that point.

She folded her arms across her chest and glared at me. "That's so easy for you to say when you don't hear what they are saying. One of them said they'd trap you. It took everything not to go off on them. They want you badly, and everybody wants me to keep my mouth shut about it. That's not right. I'm not the one to fight over a man, but you belong to me." She sighed. "It's just too much."

I narrowed my eyes. "What's too much? Being with me?"

She huffed. "No, you're putting words in my mouth, and I don't like that. I never said being with you was too much. The women and what they are saying is too much. If I hear things like that again, I'm going to say something."

"Then say it," I raised my voice. "Damn, why the hell are you holding it in for? You know what? We won't get anywhere arguing about shit neither of us can change. If this is too much for you. Let me know, and we can de?—"

"Gosh! Did I say I wanted to break up or anything like that? It seems like you might want to, from the way you keep trying to bring it up," Avani sternly interjected.

We glared at each other from across the room. Avani's chest heaved up and down like she was ready to pounce on me. Her nose flared as she tilted her head back a little. That wasn't a good sign at all. Anger simmered through me, too. It would be a shouting match if one of us didn't walk away.

I chuckled, backing up from her. "Yeah, I'm going to get some fresh air. I'll talk to you later." I turned around and walked away from her. I knew if I didn't, we probably would have broken up.

I was trying my hardest with Avani, but all she was doing was trying to push me away. I could see it from a mile away. If shewanted to leave me alone, that was all she had to say. I'd be cool with it. It would hurt like hell, but I wasn't a man to beg a woman for anything. I loved her, but I refused to be in a relationship when my girl didn't trust me. I wouldn't go through what my father had to go through.

I guess I'd be going home early to get ready to head out for the next five days. It was going to suck not being on good terms with Avani, but she was the one that started with me about damn groupies. Women who I didn't care anything about. No matter how much I told her I didn't give a damn about them, she wasn't trying to believe me. I didn't know how much more of that I could take.

It saddenedme that Akari and I weren't talking to each other. We had never gone this long without speaking, and I felt lost without hearing from him. I could admit I was to blame. I was letting my insecurities get the best of me, and that wasn't good. Not when I was in a relationship with a man big on trust. I could end up losing Akari, which I didn't want to do. I knew how he felt about trust, and I felt like I was letting him down by being insecure. It wasn't my intention at all.

If only I could let go of the past and let him love me the way I wanted to be loved. It was bad enough that I hadn't heard from him in five days, which had me wondering when he would reach out to me. I sent him a text this morning but haven't heard fromhim yet. That had upset me, but I knew how Kari was when he got mad. He had a temper that I didn't want to fool with.

To get my mind off of Akari, I was at the group home for the day, going over paperwork. We got two new kids, and all they'd done since they were here was cry. I could understand why since they needed to adjust. I could relate to that since I used to cry, too, but I did it silently to myself.

A few hours went by, and I was missing my man. I hated that it felt like distance was between us. I wondered if Akari was thinking about me as much as I was thinking about him. I needed to talk to Laisley before I lost my mind. She was the only one who could help me when I was down like this. I reached for my cell phone and dialed her number. Hopefully, she answered and wasn't busy.

"Hello, sister. What are you up to?"

I sighed and ran a hand through my hair. "I am going through it. Are you able to meet me for lunch?"

There was silence on the other end of the phone. "Hm, what have you done now?"

I grunted, not knowing how to answer that. "I messed things up between Akari and me, and I don't know how to fix it. Can you meet me at Dunk's Wings?"

"Yeah, I can. I just finished with a client. Whatever is going on with you, you need to let it go," she demanded.

That was easier said than done when I felt like I was messed up. I didn't know how the hell I backtracked, but I needed to get myself together. My sister was going to go off on me, and I knew I deserved it.

Thirty minutes later,I was walking into Dunk's Wings, looking for Laisley. Maybe she hadn't arrived yet. If she hadn't, it gave me time to order my food and find us a table. I was in love with Dunk's spicy garlic wings. It was a good thing they weren't packed in here like they usually would be.

Once I ordered my food, I found a seat and waited for Laisley to show up. While I waited, I checked my phone to see if my man had reached back out to me.

I smiled when I saw the text, but it turned into a frown when I read the text.

MyKariStar:

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