United and Dangerous by Cherie Benjamin (the speed reading book .TXT) 📕

worried by the amount, but Simon calmed her.  He informed her that the money was withdrawn from an account that was set up by his sperm donor, and not the account where he maintained his earnings from his computer programming business.  The only person who knew of the account in question would be Simon, and the one person who set it up, Sebastian.  Both Elizabeth and Simon were instructed to continue monitoring the situation and inform Kane and Ara if they should discover anything more.

 

 

 

The next day, Simon called and requested a meeting with Kane and Ara.  Their first thoughts were that Simon had more information on Sebastian, but they thought it was strange that he called, instead of just showing up as he usually did.  When he arrived at their office, Ara noticed that he seemed a little tense, but had greeted her with a hug or called her by his favorite pet name, Ara Sorella.  He was dressed in a dark suit and tie, which he kept fidgeting with, a clear indication that he was nervous. 

"Simon, please have a seat."  Kane said. 

"Thank you for seeing me."

"Is everything all right, Simon; is there a problem?"  Ara asked.  Simon looked up at his sister and brother-in-law, and squared his shoulders in a show of confidence.  “Kane, Ara, I come here to you today as a member of this family to ask the permission of the Don and Donna to ask Maggie O’Leary to marry me.”  Simon let out a gust of breath at the end.

Ara was shocked as she glanced over at Kane to see his reaction.  Simon wanted to get married, but he had just met Maggie.

Simon continued, "I want you to know that I love her and she loves me and there will never be anyone for me but Maggie."

"Simon, you aware of who she is.  Who her family is?"  Kane softly questioned, so as not to cause Simon to feel that he was being denied.

"Yes, I know, and that is why I am formally asking the Don and Donna for permission.  I am Simon Morotti, brother of the Donna, and brother-in-law of the Don of the family and I know I need to gain permission from you, before I ask permission from her brother."

Kane was impressed by Simon, but he was also worried.  Sean O'Leary was very protective of his little sister and he wondered what Sean’s reaction would be.  Fuck, that would also mean that Sean would literally become part of his family.  Chuckling for a moment, he thought that was just fucking wonderful.  Kane looked at his lovely wife; he could see the concern written on her face.  She wasn't thinking as the Donna, but as Simon's sister.  Grasping her hand, he gave her a reassuring smile. 

"Simon, you have our permission."  Kane responded firmly.

Simon jumped to his feet and shook Kane's hand.  "Thank you, thank you."  He then grabbed Ara, and swung her around in a circle.

"When are you planning to contact Sean?"  Kane inquired.

"Right now.  I want to ask her to marry me as soon as possible."  Simon was extremely exuberant in his joy.

"Okay, let's do it then."  Kane smirked.  Dialing Sean's number, he put the phone on speaker.  After a few rings, Sean picked up.  "Hello, fucker."

"Sean, just so you know, you are on speaker.  And I am fucking great."  Kane laughed.

"Beautiful Ara, are you there as well?" 

"Yes, Sean.  How are you?"  She chuckled.

"I’m great.  How is my little sister?  Every time I call, she says she is doing some kind of project or another.  Kane, do you know anything about a man that’s been hanging out with her?  I heard a man’s voice in the background the other night.  I was about to call you to check the fucker out and take care of the situation."  Sean growled. 

Fuck,  Kane thought, this was not going to be easy.  Maybe it would be better if it was a face to face meeting.  "Actually, I was calling to see if you would like some guests this week.  Ara and I were thinking about coming east and wanted to stop in and say hi."

"Hell yeah.  Why don't you bring my little sister along and I can question her about this fucker?"

Kane looked up at Simon, who was white as a ghost, and practically choking himself with his tie.  "Yeah, we will bring her.  We will fly out there tomorrow."

"Great.  I can't wait to show you around, Ara."

"Sounds like fun.  See you tomorrow, then." 

Hanging up the phone Kane looked at Simon.  "If you are sure about this, we will all go and provide you with our support."

Simon knew in his heart that he would walk through hell itself to be able to spend the rest of his life with Maggie.  They had been inseparable since they met at lunch that day.  They had spent every available minute together.  Dinners, lunches, walks in the park, and quiet evenings watching television were only some of the things that they enjoyed together.  A few weeks ago, they had just come back from dinner and had been enjoying a quiet moment together sitting on her couch in her apartment when she had told him what had happened to her in college. Never in his life had he felt such rage.  When she told him that Kane had been the one who had taken care of the boys, his love and respect for this brother-in-law increased ten fold. 

Maggie told him she would understand if he didn't want to be with her, since she was damaged goods.  Simon took her face in his hands and looked deep into her sparkling green eyes and declared what was in his heart. 

"Maggie O'Leary, I am not a perfect man.  I know I have my issues, but I promise you one thing, I love you with all my heart and soul."  He leaned in and placed a soft kiss on her plump lips.  He had never kissed anyone before and the electric sparks that flowed through him when their lips met, inginated something deep within him. 

After that evening, they kissed and hugged at every opportunity.  He wanted to build their physical relationship slowly so that she would know that he wanted her, not just for her body, but for her heart, soul, and mind. 

"I have never been more certain of anything in my life."  Simon said with conviction. 

"All right, we need to get everyone ready to go.  I think we should take the entire family, because, if Sean grants his permission, this is going to be huge."

Over the next few hours, the family was called and arrangements were made to take the large jet to accommodate everyone.  Maggie was told it was a family outing, and, since they were going to Boston, they knew they had to take her to see her family. 

She was excited and scared; she had not told her brother about Simon.  Sean was known to scare even the strongest men alive and she didn't want Simon to go anywhere.  The love she had for him was nothing she had ever felt.  He made her feel like a princess.  He had accepted her, even after she told him about what had happened to her.  After that, their relationship seemed to blossom.  She hoped she could get her brother to see that Simon was the one for her, even though he was the brother of another crime family.  Shit, why did it have to be so complicated?  She had been accepted by Simon’s family, and she had was becoming close to his mother, Portia.

The next day everyone arrived at the airport.  Zachary, Claudia, Nazario, Rosa, Portia, Kane, Ara, Uriel, Katrina, Erik, Brook, Simon, and Maggie.  They were taking several guards with them, along with Elizabeth.  She wanted to be around in case there was any more contact from Sebastian, and being so close to his last known vicinity was an opportunity to do some ground surveillance.  Everyone took their seats and chatted about the trip.  A well planned lie had been thought up so that Maggie wouldn't know the true reason she was asked to come along. 

The plane took off and Ara prayed that her brother would get his happily ever after.

Chapter 12

 

The plane arrived at Boston’s Logan International Airport, where the group was met by two large limos.  Kane had called Sean back and told him that they had decided to make it a family get away, and to tell him who all was coming.  Sean was thrilled with the idea of hosting the family, and was excited to see everyone, but none more than his little sister. 

After the luggage had been retrieved, everyone had settled in for the trip to the Mandarin Oriental Hotel.  Sean had called in a few favors and reserved an entire floor for their group.  They were quickly registered and provided their room keys. 

Each couple had a room, while Simon and Maggie had separate rooms, which raised a few eyebrows among the group.  Ara smiled sweetly at the thought of her brother being such a gentleman.  Last night, after the meeting with Kane and Ara, they had gone over to Zachary and Claudia's, where Simon told them his plans.  Claudia cried with joy and Zachary hugged him and wished him all the happiness in the world.  They had met Maggie on several occasions and had come to admire her.  Portia, who had also been there, was thrilled that Simon had met the girl of his dreams; unfortunately, she had needed to stay behind to oversee the work she had started with the girls.  Simon understood and was proud of his mother for all the efforts she was making in helping the former prostitutes.  She told Simon, however, that she would be by his side though the entire wedding planning stage.  Claudia bestowed her grandson with her engagement ring to present to Maggie.  It was an art deco ring made in platinum and centered with a 2.15-carat diamond with three single cut diamonds on each shoulder. 

Simon was truly touched by his grandmother’s sentiment, and was excited to give it to Maggie.

Sean’s family provided a security detail that monitored all the entrances and exits to the hotel during the Coven’s stay in Boston, however, the Coven brought their own security team as well.  After everyone had dropped off their luggage, they were off to the O'Leary mansion. The closer they got, the more nervous Simon became.  His palms were sweating and his knee bounced as if it had a mind of its own.  He was on his way to ask the Don of the Irish mafia to marry his little sister.  Shit, he was contemplating every type of scenario this question would garner.  Some were not too violent, while others seemed to result in his untimely death.

"Baby, what is wrong?"  Maggie asked, as she placed her hand on top of Simon’s knee for what seemed like the twelfth time to stop the bouncing.

"Nothing, just nervous about meeting your brother." He responded with what he hoped was a smile, but appeared to be a grimace.

"He is all bark and no bite, well, almost no bite."  Maggie stuttered.  Shit, she was as nervous as Simon seemed to be.  She didn't know how well Sean was going to take