The Clumsy Maid Gave a Bath to a Mafia Boss’s Dog- Then he Refused to Let Her Go

Chapter 6

On the first cold evening of autumn, nearly a year after the incident in the courtyard, Maya sat on the cottage porch repairing Duke’s crooked leather collar tag. Vincent stood near the fence in shirtsleeves, attempting to replace a loose board while refusing her advice.

“You are holding the hammer wrong,” Maya called.

“There are limited ways to hold a hammer.”

“You found one of them.”

Vincent looked toward Duke, who had wandered over to supervise the fence repair with the particular grave seriousness he brought to most household activities. “You brought me here. You are responsible for this.” Duke rested his head against Maya’s foot, entirely unbothered by the accusation.

“Dinner is ready,” Maya said.

Vincent abandoned the fence immediately.

After soup, he put on his coat and looked toward Duke. “Come.” The dog remained beside the fire. “Duke.” No movement. Maya folded her arms.

“He’s refusing to leave again.”

Vincent looked at the dog, then at Maya. “He has always had good instincts.”

Sometimes Vincent walked to the door but did not open it. “And me? Should I leave?”

Maya crossed the small room. Months earlier, the question would have frightened her — every answer around Grant had carried consequences, small punishments dressed up as ordinary conversation. With Vincent, “stay” remained a genuine choice, never once weaponized into an obligation. She took his coat from his shoulders and hung it beside her own.

“Not tonight.”

Vincent touched her cheek. “Are you sure?”

Maya looked around the cottage — Duke by the fire, Pip occupying Duke’s bed with the particular smug satisfaction of a small cat who had claimed territory considerably above his station, the uneven table Vincent had never quite finished leveling, the jar that had once been labeled jam now holding fresh flowers she’d cut from the garden that morning. The man who could command half the city waiting for permission in a room small enough that his shoulder nearly touched the doorframe.

“Stay,” she said.

Vincent kissed her slowly. Duke had refused to leave her after one bath. Vincent Castellano had taken considerably longer to admit it, but once Maya invited him to stay, the most feared man in the city became just as impossible to send home.