When Ruby left to get her iced water, Alessia looked around, taking in the rounded bar in the middle of the dining area and the dark green curtains framing each window. The wooden tables were all square with matching chairs and there were decorative light fixtures hanging from the ceiling.
It was a nice enough place, but what she was really looking for were some familiar faces. She’d seen pictures of some of the higher-ranking men in the Irish mafia, and she was sure that they would know who she was as well. There was no point in dragging this out longer than necessary. She’d come to have a difficult conversation, and it was better to get it over with.
The problem was that she didn’t see anyone that she knew was a member of the Irish mafia. What was she supposed to do? Ask someone if they knew where the owner was?
That would draw more attention than she wanted. She needed to keep this as quiet as possible. If her dad found out that she’d been here, she shuddered to think what he’d do. Most people disappeared after betraying her father, probably dumped in the bottom of the river, if she had to guess. Would he do the same to her?
“Here you go,” Ruby said when she returned with the food. She placed a square dish in front of Alessia, the golden brown mashed potatoes topped a lamb and vegetable mixture that smelled amazing. “Let me know if you need anything else.”
Now would have been the time to ask about Owen, but a sudden wave of fear made her throat feel tight. She was doubting herself. What made her think this was a good idea in the first place? If her own family couldn’t be trusted, why did she think she could trust men that werealsoknown criminals?
Maybe there was another way. She’d already considered going to the authorities, but her dad had cops in his pocket. She’d ever heard it suggested that he might have someone in the FBI on his payroll. So, going to them felt even riskier than this. At least she was sure that Owen Walsh wasn’t going to run to her father and tell him that she was a traitor.
Forcing herself to pick up her fork, she tried the shepherd’s pie, and it was just as delicious as it looked. Despite her uneasy stomach, she was able to eat nearly half of it before Ruby came back over to check on her.
“How is everything?” the chipper blonde asked.
“It’s delicious. But I might need a box.”
“So, no dessert today?” Ruby asked. “That’s a shame. We have a great Guinness chocolate cake. It’s ruined my diet more than once since I started working here.”
Alessia chuckled, but before she could decline, she felt a rush of awareness raising the fine hairs on the back of her neck. She was being watched.
Glancing around, she immediately met the eyes of the man she’d come here to see. Owen Walsh had just walked into the dining room from a hallway that she assumed led back to the kitchen, and he was glaring at her.
The food she’d just eaten seemed to turn into a lead ball in her stomach. She was right, Owen recognized her, and he was pissed. He stormed over, coming right to her table with aggression pouring off of him in waves. Alessia froze in place, the real danger she’d put herself in by coming here overwhelming her senses.
Owen was tall and muscular, filling out his black suit in a way that left no doubt in her mind that this man was strong enough to snap her bones if he were so inclined. If the menace barreling in her direction was any indication, he just might want to do it.
When he reached them, Owen surprised her by crowding in close to her. At first, she thought that he was trying to intimidate her by towering over her, but she quickly realized that he was purposefully placing himself between her and Ruby.
He was protecting her?
Alessia almost wanted to laugh. She was no threat to the friendly waitress. As she glanced at Ruby’s face, she expected to see alarm in her expression. After all, a big, angry mafia boss just stormed over and shoved himself into the small space between them.
But Ruby was just smiling and rolling her eyes. “What are you doing?”
Owen didn’t answer her. His attention focused on Alessia.
“What the hell are you doing here?” he barked, drawing attention from the tables nearby. So much for trying to go unnoticed. At least, no one here was likely to be associated with the Italian mafia.
“I need to talk to you,” she replied, glad that her voice remained cool and calm, not betraying the fear she felt as she tilted her head back to look at him looming above her.
His eyes narrowed, full of suspicion. “Why in the hell would I do that?”
“Owen!” Ruby stepped to his side, slapping his shoulder, and Alessia realized that they must be a couple. It was the only explanation for how comfortable she was with him when he was obviously pissed. “Be nice.”
“You don’t know who this is,” Owen said, not taking his eyes off Alessia.
“I don’t care. Don’t be rude.”
She put her hands on her hips as she bossed him around, and Alessia decided that she liked this woman. But the longer this conversation went on here at her table, the more attention they were drawing.
“Can we move this somewhere private?” she asked.
Owen hesitated, but eventually gave a curt nod. “Fine. Follow me.”
He turned and headed back to the hallway that he’d come from. Alessia got out of her seat and hurried to catch up with his long strides with Ruby trailing along behind. The hallway led them past the kitchen and a couple of closed doors, but when they reached a staircase near the back exit, Owen stopped and focused his attention on Ruby.
