The Enforcer or The Mafia Prince

Chapter 27

Jessica felt guilty for stopping Tristan in the dressing room. Logically, she understood that it was perfectly reasonable to have done so. However, the look on his face left Jess worried she'd hurt him.

"Tristan?" Jessica wanted his attention as they walked back to Tristan's car through the mall. Groups of people shoved past the couple, not paying attention to who was in their way as they looked for their destinations. Tristan didn't seem to have heard Jessica and kept walking as Jess got caught up in the crowd and separated from him. Someone gripped Jess's upper arm and pulled her into a secluded alcove. A hand covered her mouth before she could scream and shoved her against the wall.

"Do not cause a scene."

Jessica looked up to see a familiar pair of brown eyes looking at her. She and the man had never met, but it was impossible to mistake him. Liam Ryan stood before her as Sophia watched, hands on her hips. Jess settled down; Ryan wouldn't do anything to her in a crowded mall. She looked at her wrist from the corner of her eye; her bracelet was still on. Jess looked Liam in the eye and tapped his hand twice, signaling him to let her talk. The calm gesture confused the man; most women would freak out.

"Nice to meet you, Liam," Jessica said politely. Her relaxed demeanor made Sophia agitated. She wanted to slap the little slut for ignoring her the other day, but Liam held her back.

"I guess my reputation proceeds me," Liam smirked. He liked that Jess didn't behave as expected and already knew who he was.

"Your reputation? I wouldn't say that. However, your distinctive w***e made it easy to narrow down." It took Sophia a moment to realize that Jessica had insulted her. In her head, Jess calculated the seconds it took Liam to pull her over. How long would Tristan take to know she was gone?

"Ha!" Liam found the remark entertaining. He didn't like Sophia, but she was pretty and gave good head. She'd make the perfect trophy wife until Liam had no use left for her. Sophia would be no more than a plaything if he found someone better. That's why he had no problem dragging out the engagement. Their parents know each other, and Liam has known Sophia all her life. Still, she was annoying and brought nothing to the table. Without love, she was just there.

"Why you," Sophia stomped her strappy-heeled foot like a preteen throwing a fit. "Who are you calling a w***e? You're the whore."

"Nice comeback," Jess deadpanned and rolled her eyes. The exaggerated motion infuriated Sophia and made her act out even more.

"That's enough, Sophia." Liam didn't even look at his arm candy. He was preoccupied with looking at Tristan O'Sullivan's new side piece. "It's nice to meet you, Jessica."

Jess didn't need to ask how he knew who she was. Sophia had already hinted that Liam knew who Jess was. Even if that was an incorrect assumption, the tabloids already had her plastered all over their headlines. It wouldn't be difficult for Ryan to find information about her.

"Can I help you with something, Mr. Ryan?" The annoyance in her voice was intentionally disrespectful to the would-be Mob leader. Liam liked that she wasn't afraid of him.

"Sophia and I were passing by when she pointed you out. I thought it would be polite to introduce myself." Liam's handsome smirk did nothing to tempt Jessica. She didn't have many reasons to feel loyal to the O'Sullivans. Still, for all intents and purposes, she was Tristan's girl to the outside world and felt comfortable with him. Jess may not know her feelings for Tristan yet, but she did enjoy his company.

On the other hand, Liam wore too much cologne as if overcompensating for something. His red hair clashed horribly with the pink dress shirt he wore to match Sophia, no doubt to make the girl shut up. Clearly, he came from money, but wealth could make up for his lack of taste. Jess could tell someone else had picked out his outfit today; that was probably true most days.

Jessica heard frantic footsteps and labored breathing. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Tristan arrive. He had his phone out as he'd been tracking her. Jessica didn't tear her eyes away from Liam but said, "Tristan, sweetheart, thank you for joining us. Mr. Ryan here was introducing himself."

Sophia looked confused as to which man she should pay attention to. Her obliviousness irritated Liam, but he hid it well.

"Ryan, what are you doing here?" Tristan wasn't in the mood for games. One moment he was walking down to the elevator, upset with Jessica's distant behavior. The next, he was frantically searching for her, afraid she'd gotten mad and ran away or something had happened to her.

"Sophia and I saw your lovely new girlfriend. As a business acquaintance, I felt it only natural to introduce myself to her. Don't you think, Tristan?" Jess marveled at the effortless way Liam wove hatred and disrespect into someone's first name.

"Not at all. What do you want?" Liam squared up to Tristan. He was about two inches shorter and nowhere near as good-looking. Jessica linked her arm with Tristan and placed her free hand on his chest.

"Baby," Jessica purred, "don't let him get to you." Tristan knew she was acting. Still, he couldn't help but feel calmed by Jess's behavior. Tristan smirked and kissed her forehead.

"Okay, Jess. I won't." No one missed the look in his eyes as Tristan stared at Jess.

"Ahem." Liam coughed, not enjoying the display of affection. "Anyway, Tristan, it's nice to see you. I believe you know my fiancée, Sophia." Liam held out an arm for his girl to join him.

"Sure I do, Liam. Your fiancée's a good ride," Tristan replied, his meaning not lost on Liam even if Sophia herself looked clueless.

"Ha!" Jessica couldn't help herself and busted out laughing. No one would enjoy the reminder that their significant other had f****d another gentleman in the room. The look on Liam's face was complicated. Yes, he'd instructed Sophia to get close to Tristan. However, he didn't say to sleep with him. Deep down, he knew that Sophia had done that purely to satiate her own needs. He hated it.

"Well, what kind of friend would I be if I didn't share now and then." Liam's implication made it evident that Sophia had only gotten close to Tristan on his orders.

"The kind of friend that," Tristan began to say something rude.

"Would join us for lunch. Tristan, weren't you saying you were hungry?" Jessica turned to Tristan and winked. "How about we invite Mr. Ryan and his fiancée to lunch with us?" Jessica had an idea, and the couple was the perfect set of flies to help it gain traction. Tristan didn't know what Jess was planning. Nevertheless, he trusted her judgment and went along with her.

"You're absolutely right, Love. Ryan, how about you and Sophia join us for lunch? We were about to head over to Pinched on the River; care to join us?"

"We'll meet you there."

Tristan and Sophia walked back to his car, fully aware they were being watched. Jess held Tristan's hand the entire way.

"Jess, I'm so sorry," Tristan apologized for getting upset when they got in the car.

At the same time, Jessica said, "I'm so glad you found me."

"Are you okay? Did he do anything to you?"

"No, he didn't even try. Either he knew you'd show up shortly, or he was too chicken to do anything in a public place."

"That's good. Why are you inviting them to eat with us? What's going on in that head of yours?" Tristan put the key in the ignition and started the car.

"That's right! Call Declan or whoever can arrange for a photographer at the restaurant." Tristan put a hand behind Jess's headrest to help him look over his shoulder as he backed out of the parking spot.

"You want us to be seen?"

"What better way to quash love triangle rumors than a double date?" Jessica had an evil smile on her face. For a brief moment, Tristan felt afraid of her.

"You're willing to invite a future mob boss and business rival out for lunch for a photo op?"

"Why not? It's not like he's useful for anything else," Jessica scoffed. "God, I forgot his cologne reeked. I won't be able to eat much. Also, I need you to let me pay for lunch."

"Why?"

"I want Ryan to see me treating you well. I want him to fully believe I'm your girlfriend."

"Okay, Jess. We'll do it your way," Tristan said.

The couples met up at Pinched on the River ten minutes later. It wasn't a far drive from the mall. Jessica was impressed with the restaurant, and Tristan for suggesting it so quickly. Jessica could easily create a vegan couscous bowl there. Did Tristan plan to take her to lunch already? The group sat on the patio, overlooking the water. It was a beautiful location, and the breeze kept Liam's cologne downwind. After giving their orders to the waitress, Liam was the first to start the conversation.

"So, Jessica, how long have you and Tristan been dating?" Liam had tried everything to find out more about Jessica. He had no idea how Tristan would ever come across such a woman.

Jessica smiled broadly and looked up at Tristan, grabbing his hand, "Not long at all, only a few weeks." Jess was terrible at lying, so she told the truth.

"Oh?" Sophia sounded bitter. "How did you two meet?"

"Through Tristan's dad, Ciaran. He's such a nice man; thought we'd hit it off, and he was right." Tristan grinned at Jessica. She was a master at making their situation sound romantic. He found himself wishing it were true.

"You've met Ciaran already?" Liam hadn't expected that. He figured Jess was a plaything for Tristan. Hearing that Jess knew Ciaran made Liam wonder how deep their relationship went. Could he use her to get to the O'Sullivans?

"I have. We had brunch just this morning. Didn't we, sweetheart?"

"That's right. Dad really enjoys getting to know Jess. They were discussing the future of the company and everything." Tristan left his remarks somewhat vague. He wasn't as good as Jessica.

"How did you two meet?" Jess turned to look at Sophia and Liam as though she'd remembered it'd be polite to ask.

"Sophia and I were childhood sweethearts," Liam replied, sounding rehearsed. Sophia looked satisfied with his response. "Seems awfully fast to move in together, considering you two just started dating, doesn't it?"

Liam's question answered two of Tristan's and Jessica's. First, Liam Ryan obviously knew Jessica was staying at the O'Sullivan building. Second, Sophia didn't manage to get a video out if Liam didn't realize that they weren't, in fact, living together. Tristan was thrilled as he realized he could safely remove the camera without anyone knowing he knew about it.

"It's a convenient location since I'm still in school," Jess evaded answering Liam's question directly.

"That's right; I forgot you're a student. I should have remembered. I think I saw you the other day looking worried as you were waiting alone on the south side of campus."

"He's definitely having me followed," Jessica thought, maintaining a sweet smile.

"That must have been the day I had a paper due," Jessica replied, not taking Liam's bait. He wanted to rattle her, make her afraid. She refused to let him. The more he played with her, the more Liam liked her.

Liam continued to ask Jessica more questions. He acted as though he'd forgotten all about Sophia, which she must have noticed because she looked increasingly upset throughout lunch. On the other hand, Jessica wasn't playing Liam's game and kept looping Tristan back into the conversation. Either she'd ask his opinion or reference something Tristan had previously said. Jess didn't know what Liam was trying to do but wanted no part in it.

When lunch was over, Jessica had a headache and a sore face. She'd smiled so long that her cheeks hurt. In the car, Jessica had Tristan call Declan.

"Did they get the shot?" Jessica asked, rubbing her temples.

"Yep, a few good ones with everyone smiling," Declan reported. Jessica motioned for Tristan to do the talking.

"Good, leak the photos to a few blogs and tabloids. Have them post about our delightful double date," Tristan said, equally exhausted as Jessica.

"Sure thing, Boss," Declan responded before hanging up.

"Hey, Jess?"

"Hmm? Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm bad at lying, so it felt like putting on a play just now. Don't you think?"

"I agree. Let's get you back so you can take a nap." Tristan held Jessica's hand as he shifted into gear.