Fatal Attraction (Dark Desires 4)

We had talked about getting married at the Hampton house, but my dad quickly kiboshed that idea. There was no way he and my six brothers, and their large, extended families, could all travel to the Hamptons for what he called a “fancy-shmancy rich asshole’s wedding”. The rich asshole was, of course, Conner. He and my father were still not the best of friends and probably never would be, but they got along well enough for my benefit, which was all I could ask of them.

Naturally, Conner wanted the wedding to end all weddings, the bigger the better, sparing no expense of course. And he wanted it to be a spectacle on par with his reputation and bank account. He wanted to invite the cream of New York society to the house, the richest men and women in the country, and fly in Lady Gaga to perform on a stage setup on the beach. And have the Cardinal of New York City—supposedly a close friend of the Pope himself—to perform the ceremony. When I ran those plans past my dad, he nearly went through the roof of his bar.

“You’re a South Boston girl, Katie O’Hara, and you’ll be married in Boston or it’ll be the death of us all.”

“But, Dad…”

“Your poor mother, thank Jesus, Joseph, and Mary that she is not here to hear you talking out of your head like this.”

“But, dad…”

“No, stop, no more,” he said, holding up his meaty hands like he was pushing back an evil spirit. “You’ll be married here at St. Pat’s, in the church your mother loved so dear.”

“You mean the church that you haven’t set foot in since mom died?”

“Well… maybe it’s time I got back to going,” he said, a look of shame on his ruddy face. “Maybe if I went to church more you would not have gotten involved with the Devil himself.”

“Dad, Conner is not the Devil,” I said, rolling my eyes as I stood behind the bar stacking dirty beer mugs and shot glasses into a rack that I would carry into the kitchen to wash. I’d flown in to spend the weekend with him and break the news of my impending nuptials. Spending time with Sean O’Hara meant being shoulder to shoulder with him behind the bar slogging beers and shots for rowdy customers.

“If he’s not the Devil, he’s a damned close relative,” Dad said, shaking his head. “What he tried

to do to your Uncle Allen was just shameless. I can’t believe you give him the time of day.”

“He made things right with Uncle Allen,” I said firmly. I reached across the bar and put my hand on his. “And I’m going to marry him, Dad, no matter how big a fit you pitch or how many threats you make. I love him, and he loves me. And that’s all that matters. That’s all Mom would have cared about.”

He scrunched up his nose and worked his mouth back and forth. “Dammit, Katie girl, he’s just not good enough for you…”

“I’m not Katie girl anymore, dad,” I said, giving his hand a squeeze. “I’m a woman now. And I’m in love with Conner McGee. I’m going to be Mrs. Katie O’Hara McGee, and there’s nothing you can do to stop our plans, so please, give me your blessing and be happy for me.”

“You’re breaking me heart, Katie O’Hara,” he said dramatically. “I had such high hopes for you.”

“Dad…” I came around the bar to stand beside him. I leaned over and rested my head on his shoulder. “Is Conner perfect? No. Do I want him to be? No, not really. I love him just the way he is. And if you would give him a chance, you’d learn to love him, too.”

He cut his eyes at me and shook his head. “I’ll never love that man,” he said in a huff. He turned to face me, and stared deeply into my eyes. With his hands on my shoulders, he worked up a smile. “But, I reckon it’s okay if you do.”

“Well, that’s good to know,” I said with a relieved smile. My eyes welled with tears. “Because I am going to marry him, Dad. And give him lots and lots of adorable little Irish children.”

His features softened at the prospect of more grandchildren, adding to the twelve he already had by my brothers. “Fine, I will give you my blessing, but the wedding must be here in Boston. If you won’t do it for me, do it for your brothers. They don’t have Conner McGee’s money, nor will they accept his charity. They are hard working men with families. They can’t take time off to come to some rich ass—I mean, well, hell’s bells, Katie girl, you know what I mean.”

“Fine,” I said with a nod. “We’ll have the wedding here, in Boston, Dad, but you are not paying for it.”

“It’s a father’s duty to pay for his daughter’s wedding,” he said with a frown. He could frown all he wanted. My dad barely made enough money to get by. There was no way he was going to pay for my wedding.

“Dad, I’m marrying one of the richest men in New York. And I make a very good living at my job. I’ll have the wedding in Boston, but only if you agree to let Conner and I foot the bill.”

“Fine, but can we have a big party here the night before?”

“Fair enough,” I said. I held up my hand and spat into it, then stuck it out to him. “Shake on it to seal the deal.”

So, we shook on it and the wedding was held at St. Patrick’s in Boston two months later. Conner was not thrilled about having to cut the guest list down by half, but a little favor on my part quickly got him to change his mind. Remember that, ladies, a quick blowjob can change a man’s mind faster than a long argument.

After the wedding, which was beautiful, by the way, we had a large reception in the church basement. I wore my mother’s wedding dress (we were the same size, thank you, Jesus) and Conner wore his best tuxedo. Reed was Conner’s best man and Cassandra was Reed’s date. I was glad they had all made up. Good friends were hard to find, even slimy ones like Reed. It would have been a shame to lose them over something as sinful as money.

The service was quick, and the applause was loud, just as I had hoped it would be. The attendees gave us a standing ovation as we walked down the aisle for the first time as husband and wife.

My entire family was there, including Uncle Allen, who was back running his company, Benson Digital. He was still battling cancer, but he looked healthier than he had looked in a long time. He even stood up and toasted me and Conner at the reception.

We had come a long way since the fight in Conner’s office, thanks in large part to Conner strong-arming Reed into not pressing charges and letting Uncle Allen buy back the manufacturing piece of Benson Digital.