In Boston St Valentine's Day Is an Irish Holiday
Chapter 8
It took almost two months to get everything in order for Mary Kate to come to Boston. She had to apply for an Irish passport and complete the necessary paperwork so she could come to America. Once that was finished, all that was left was to book her flight and wait for the day she would walk through the gate at Logan International Airport.
When that day finally came, Mike, Mick, Mike’s driver and bodyguard, and I waited at the gate for Mary Kate to come through the door. The board finally showed that her flight from Dublin had arrived, and I felt a surge of anxiety—I was definitely missing her. It would probably take at least half an hour for her to clear customs and immigration.
The longer it took, the more anxious I became. I started playing mind games with myself. What if she was denied entry? What would we do? I didn’t need to worry. Soon, she appeared through the doors, trailed by a couple of men of various ages. She kept scanning the airport, searching for me. When she finally saw Mike and me, her face lit up with a smile. She waved and began walking in our direction, her admirers trailing behind her.
Mike, amused by the scene, said, “Jack, look familiar?”
I grunted in reply, not exactly happy with what I was seeing.
“Mick, see what you can do to keep those men from pestering Jack’s girlfriend, will you?” Mike said, smiling and waving to Mary Kate.
Mick just smiled, grunted his acknowledgment, and walked over to Mary Kate, who was doing her best to fend off the men pestering her. By now, she was clearly overwhelmed, and Mick moved briskly to her side.
Mick came up to Mary Kate, quickly introduced himself, and then positioned himself between her and the men bothering her. With expert precision, he elbowed the one closest to her just enough to convince him it was in his best interest to go pester someone else. A couple more well-placed elbows to the ribs and gut persuaded the others to leave her alone.
Mary Kate greeted me with a tight hug, then gave Mike one as well. She even hugged Mick, which caused the normally stoic bodyguard to blush. Who knew a thug could blush when hugged by a pretty girl? We walked to the luggage claim area so Mary Kate could get her bags, and who would have guessed it would take all three of us to carry her luggage to Mike’s car? She had brought enough to stay permanently, not just for two weeks. We barely managed to squeeze it all into the normally cavernous trunk of Mike’s Cadillac limousine.
On the ride into Boston, Mary Kate entertained us by telling stories about her flight from Dublin. It had been her first time flying, and she loved the experience. I had booked her first-class tickets for both her flight from Dublin and her return from Boston. At first, she said, she enjoyed the attention from the other passengers, but there were two men who kept pestering her. One claimed to be a “movie producer” and even gave her his card, saying he could make her a star. She showed the card to me first, then to Mike. When Mike saw it, his expression darkened, and he handed it back to her. All he said was, “Mary Kate, the movies this guy produces aren’t the kind you want to be part of. I’ll let him know you’re not interested.”
I knew immediately what sort of movies Mike was talking about and was grateful he was looking out for her. It would have killed me if I had lost her to the creep who had offered to make her a star. I decided to wait until we were alone together to explain what kind of movies this guy made. Mary Kate would need to be educated about the sorts of people in the world. She was still naive to a certain degree, and that was one of the things I found so appealing about her, her innocence and her unspoiled outlook on life. I hoped that after I educated her, she wouldn’t lose that innocence.
We stayed in Boston for a couple of days, showing Mary Kate around the city, and stopped by the offices of O’Shaughnessy Limited of Boston. I showed her my office and introduced her to several of the people who worked for the company. Mike wanted to speak with me privately, so I left Mary Kate under the watchful eye of Mike’s assistant and mine. I went into Mike’s office to see what he wanted. At first, I thought he wanted to discuss company business, but it turned out to be a more personal matter.
“Jack, I had Mick have a meeting with the ‘movie producer,’” Mike said once it was just the two of us. “Don’t worry, he’ll walk again eventually. He decided to move his production company to another city, way across the country. It’s a healthier environment for him. He won’t be bothering Mary Kate anymore.”
“Mike, you can’t go around breaking kneecaps. Those days are over,” I said in shock. “Getting the reputation that we will whack the competition is bad for business. People will shy away from O’Shaughnessy Limited of Boston if they are afraid they’re going to get whacked for competing with us.”
“Relax, Jack, I know that. I promise I won’t put a hit out on the competition. This guy is a creep. He takes innocent young women and destroys their lives by putting them on video and on the internet. Are you telling me you’d be OK if he did that to Mary Kate?”
“Well, no,” I said, embarrassed that I had been called on the carpet by a reformed gangster.
“Jack, I have a stake in Mary Kate as well. If she is to become the face of O’Shaughnessy Limited of Boston, she needs to portray everything that is wholesome and good about the old country, not be the star of the latest porn feature on the internet. Even I know that.”
I didn’t like being corrected by a former gangster, but he was right. Boston didn’t need people like him around, especially not my Mary Kate.
After my private meeting with Mike, I went on the lookout for Mary Kate. I didn’t have to look long; she was in my office, gazing out at the Boston skyline. That night was our last in Boston before we were to head out to Nantucket. For dinner, I took her to one of the best restaurants in the city and told her of my plans to make her the face of O’Shaughnessy Limited of Boston. She wasn’t receptive at first, not until I explained that it would give her a way to spend more time with me. Once she understood that, she was more than agreeable.
After our meal, we went for a walk by the harbor and talked about our future. We discussed marriage, kids, and where we would live. We compromised and decided to live as a married couple in both Boston and Ireland, probably in County Donegal.
The next morning, we took a regional jet flight from Boston to Nantucket. The flight took about an hour. The car Mike and I had rented so we could travel around the island was parked at the airport; it beat walking or riding a bike in the rain. I drove Mary Kate and me to the house Mike had deeded to me. Mary Kate loved it at first sight, and when I said that after we decided to get married it would be our primary residence, at least in the United States, she was thrilled.
I unlocked the house and then went to get our luggage out of the car. I carried the luggage into the house and was met by Mary Kate in tears. At first, I thought she hated the place, but I was wrong. Her emotions had gotten the best of her when she realized that this was to be her home here in the USA.
“Oh, Jack, I never imagined I’d live somewhere this beautiful. The view just takes my breath away,” Mary Kate said.
I took my single bag to the spare bedroom and placed it on the bed. I planned to unpack it after I had shown the island to Mary Kate. But first, we needed to go to the store, as there was nothing in the house to eat. I waited patiently for her to unpack. It took close to an hour, but when she came out of the bedroom, she was ready to go shopping and see the island.
Food shopping with Mary Kate was an experience in itself. At the market, she inspected every fresh vegetable and piece of fruit they offered. If it didn’t pass the sniff test, it didn’t make it into her basket. Nothing from a can or box would ever be seen in her kitchen. Seafood had to come from the island’s small fishing fleet, and only that day’s catch would do; otherwise, she would pass it by. Her standards clearly showed in the meals she prepared. Mary Kate was probably the best cook whose food I had ever eaten. If she married me, I would be getting a bargain in a future wife.
After shopping, we took some time to drive around the island so Mary Kate could see the summer homes of some of the wealthiest families in the United States, the island’s beaches, and the town of Nantucket itself. We didn’t stay out too long, as we had to get the groceries back to the house and refrigerated before they went bad. I promised Mary Kate that when we had more time, we would explore the island more thoroughly. She gave me the cutest smile when I told her that. My heart melted in response to that smile. My college flame and Eira never got that reaction out of me, I noted to myself.
Supper that night was a stew that included clams and cabbage as its main ingredients. I had no idea what it was called, but I knew I had to have a second serving. Being a lad from Pennsylvania farm country, I never thought of myself as someone who liked seafood, but it was one of the best dishes I had eaten since moving to the Boston area. If I had to choose between it and bratwurst, I would have been hard-pressed.