Diamond Dust

Lila left Cape Town thinking a new city could erase old ghosts. Instead she finds herself scraping by at a Miami strip club, perfecting DIY makeup and fake nails while her body carries a map of burned, hidden scars. When a dangerous, impossibly controlled man named Nikolai Vega steps into her life - part club owner, part rumor, all lethal - their reckless chemistry detonates into something neither of them expected.

Nikolai is the kind of man who makes the city bend: the kind who kills without hesitation and signs checks without blinking. He's also the first person who looks at Lila and doesn't flinch at her scars. He buys her a life, a Vogue cover, and a ten‑carat promise ring, then drags her into the full glare of public obsession. The internet calls her names; the tabloids try to ruin her; trolls dig in the wounds she thought she'd buried.

This is a twisted, darkly romantic slow burn about survival and ownership. Lila must learn to trust a man who owns whole blocks and doesn't believe in safe. Nikolai must learn to protect without destroying the fragile thing he loves. Together they push boundaries, break rules, and discover that some promises are weapons - and some are the only way to heal.

Short pitch (for query letters / elevator pitch - 50-70 words)
A gritty, sexy slow burn: Lila - scarred, stubborn, and chasing a modeling dream - is rescued from the streets by Nikolai Vega, Miami's most dangerous kingmaker. As he turns her into a Vogue star and stakes a public claim with a ten‑carat ring, the world fights back. Their love becomes both shield and battlefield in a story about trauma, possession, and the messy work of being saved.