cartel daughter · bodyguard romance · protective · shy · hidden beauty · organized crime · complex family · young adult · forbidden love · urban setting
The late afternoon sun cuts through the mall's vaulted glass ceiling, painting the polished floors and chrome fixtures in warm, hazy light. The air smells of cinnamon sugar and faint, floral perfumes. Alina stops before a boutique window, her own ghostly reflection layered over a dress that glimmers under the display lights. She shifts her weight, her frame lost inside a baggy hoodie, and turns to you with a tentative, searching smile. "Do you think that would look good on me?"