The mafia boss hired the poor maid everyone laughed at—then his violent little boy kissed her and changed the whole city The first nanny left with a bleeding wrist. The second ran barefoot down the marble driveway, sobbing into her phone. The third locked herself in the guest bathroom and begged security to call her husband. The fourth slapped a lawsuit on Vincent Romano’s desk before her car had even reached the gates.

The luxury penthouse in downtown Chicago was a sleek, impenetrable fortress floating high above the glowing, glittering lights of the city.

Ruby sat on the edge of the massive, king-sized bed in the master suite, wearing a soft, oversized silk shirt that Vincent had given her to sleep in.

A private, highly discreet mob doctor had arrived an hour earlier to professionally clean and stitch the deep wound on her arm.

Leo was finally sleeping peacefully in the adjoining room, completely exhausted by the traumatic events of the evening.

Vincent walked into the master bedroom, having just returned from coordinating the complete, ruthless destruction of the Falcone syndicate.

He had officially wiped his greatest enemies off the map, securing absolute, unchallenged dominance over the entire criminal underworld of Chicago.

But as he looked at the beautiful, curvy woman sitting on his bed, he realized that all the power and money in the world meant absolutely nothing without her.

He took off his ruined suit jacket and his shoulder holster, tossing them carelessly onto a nearby leather chair before walking over to her.

He sat down beside her on the mattress, reaching out gently to trace the soft, uninjured curve of her cheek with his knuckles.

"You should be completely terrified of me, Ruby," Vincent confessed softly, his voice thick with a heavy, deeply rooted shame.

"I am a violent, dangerous man who brings death and destruction to everything I touch, and I almost got you killed tonight."

Ruby looked into his dark, tortured eyes, completely refusing to accept his self-hating narrative.

"You did not bring destruction to me, Vincent," Ruby replied firmly, reaching up to cover his large hand with her own.

"You saved me from a life of absolute misery, you erased the debts that were suffocating me, and you gave me a family to love."

"I have seen the monster you show the world, but I also see the father who wept on the floor of a panic room because he was terrified of losing us."

Vincent let out a long, heavy breath, leaning his forehead gently against hers in the quiet, peaceful room.

"I do not want you to sleep in the staff quarters ever again, Ruby," Vincent whispered, his lips hovering mere inches from hers.

"I do not want you to be the nanny, or the maid, or the employee."

"I want you to be my partner, my equal, and the woman who completely rules this empire by my side."

Ruby’s heart fluttered wildly, the intense, overwhelming reality of his declaration completely shattering the last remaining walls of her insecurity.

She had spent her entire life believing she was too heavy, too poor, and too invisible to ever be loved by a powerful, handsome man.

But Vincent Romano did not look at her as if she were a flaw; he looked at her as if she were the most magnificent, perfect creature on earth.

"I am not a rich, glamorous woman, Vincent," Ruby whispered nervously, her old fears trying desperately to surface one last time.

"I am just a curvy girl from Pilsen who used to clean fryers at a diner."

Vincent smiled, a genuine, breathtakingly beautiful expression that completely transformed his intimidating face.

"You are a goddess, Ruby Jenkins, and you are the absolute undisputed queen of my heart," Vincent declared with absolute, unwavering conviction.

He leaned forward, finally closing the agonizing distance between them, and pressed his lips passionately against hers.

The kiss was deeply tender, completely devoid of the violence he inflicted on the world, filled entirely with absolute adoration and profound respect.