How Karma Found Jesse Again|18+

TEN

"Are you sure you wanna marry, her? She's so...small... and squeaky. You're gonna be dealing with Minnie Mouse your whole life, bro." I say to Ryan as I throw another punch against the punching bag in our home gym.

Ryan throws his head back and laughs loudly as he places an Airpod in his ear and swipes through Spotify to find a song before dropping his phone and walking over to pick up one 20 pound dumbbell, and sitting on the nearest bench closest to where I'm currently imagining Carter's face on this punching bag as I strike it again.

"Yes. Yes. I'm sure. You know you'd like her if you got to know her more." he says

I shake my head and pause before hitting the bag again to look at him, "I have no desire to do anything of the sort." I begin to take off one of the boxing gloves I'm wearing, "She can't stand me anyways."

"She can't stand you because you can't stand her." this causes me to grin.

"I'm glad she read the signals I was trying to send her. It's great she got the message." Ryan stops lifting the dumbbell and gives me a blank look causing me to spread my arms to my side in question, "What'd I say now?"

"You always say the wrong thing. Maybe if you tried being kinder, maybe started calling her by her actual name she would grow to like you. You're actually a likable person when you want to be."

Drenched in sweat, I walk over to the mini-fridge we had in here that was full of Gatorade and water. Grabbing a bottle of water, I twist the cap open and let out a chuckle, "Paola knows I know her name. She just doesn't understand that someone like me can make a joke once in a while," I take a sip before saying, "Let her hate me. It's become a source of entertainment. That...and trying to seduce Karma."

Ryan lets out a hearty laugh at that and says, "How far do you think you're getting with that?"

"I never realized how stubborn she truly is. It wasn't this hard the first time around." I say thoughtfully. Then again the first time around I didn't intentionally try to get with her it just happened, "Now she's trying to use that Carter guy to get over me."

"I know somewhere deep down she still wants to be with me but somethings holding her back."

"Yeah." Ryan starts off, "Her parents."

I raise an eyebrow, "She told you this?" Don't tell me after five years she still is using this whole 'My parents don't want me to date a criminal' thing against me again. Ok well, now when I say it like that it makes sense.

"No." Ryan says, "She might've alluded to it while you were still locked up. She's one of the people whose blessing I asked for before asking Pao to marry me. I had talked to her about maybe giving up this whole thing for Paola. I asked what it would take for you to get on her good side again and she said something about how it didn't matter because you'd never get her parent's blessing."

I begin to groan and he interrupts me, "You have to understand the cultural differences you two have. If you were planning to marry her--"

"We're not getting any younger of course I plan to marry her." I cut him off. Marriage wasn't even a question it's one of the many things I wanted us to do together.

"You'd need to have a traditional Nigerian wedding...in Nigeria. At some point maybe another standard American wedding if you both would like to. There are so many cultural customs and steps you'd have to take if you really are serious about it. Her parents understand that she's American as well and is bound to fall for someone who isn't even Nigerian or African but it is ideal. Just be lucky you wouldn't have to pay a bride price."

"None of that even sounds like an issue though, Ryan. If she wants to have two weddings, we'll have both. If I have to fly to Nigeria to properly take her hand in marriage, then that's just what it'll have to be. And however many millions I have to give just to have her take my fucking last name I'd be happy to do it. " I don't see why he even brought this up as if all of it would turn me off from the idea of marrying the one person I know that I want to be with forever. Do I deserve her? Probably not. Are her parents right about me? Maybe. Does my public criminal record change the fact that I have what it takes to be the kind of man that their daughter deserves to have in her life? Absolutely not.

She said yes to a date with Carter because it's safe. Because he's predictable and I'm not. So what if I find joy in the pain of others and Carter likes to sit at a desk and type all day? We all have kinks and hobbies.

He needs some spice in his life anyway. And I was kind enough to be the one to happily give him that extra kick he needed as he took Karma on a date at my new restaurant.

It was quite disrespectful if you ask me. Bringing my girl to my restaurant on a whole romantic outing?

Yes, you heard it here first. My hobbies not only include sharpshooting and sarcasm. I'm now a proud restaurant owner.

While I was serving my time, Emiliano and Athena who are practically my second set of parents had come to visit me and let me know that their restaurant was going under. They weren't getting any customers anymore. So they were selling the place.

That was the first public place I took Karma when we first started getting to know each other and that memory of the day we spent there is one of my favorites. I couldn't let the place just die like that so I bought it.

I paid to get it renovated, added more space to make it bigger. Changed the decor so it looked more upscale and classy. Luckily, the renovations were done right around the time I was preparing to be released. Since it's been open its one of the most exclusive joints in town. Difficult to make reservations and a long waitlist. With how well it's doing I'm thinking of expanding and opening more locations in other states.

I named it after myself. Ashton is my middle name.

So on the day of Carter and Karma's 'work thing' as she called it, Athena had texted me to let me know she saw Karma on a date and I begged her to add a little something to his food just this once. Hopefully, he never goes back there again.

Was it wrong? Yes. But if it's wrong why does it feel so right?

I couldn't blame Ryan for wanting to turn his life around for his annoying Disney character that he has for a fiance. I was heavily thinking of doing the same. I already missed five years of Karma's life and I can't miss anymore.

And as for Carter...he'll just have to suffer the consequences of pushing up on what's mine.

I've never been one to share.

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[A/N] I'm sorry but Jesse's new personality is sending me as I read this chapter LMAOOO