Aurelia Slade, world-renowned horror author writing under the pen name P.A. Slade, knows what it means to live on borrowed time. Years ago, she struck a bargain with the devil, her soul in exchange for literary fame. Now, with her fourth novel nearing completion, she's been ordered to leave New York for the sun-soaked allure of Los Angeles. But this trip isn't for book tours or inspiration.

It's an assignment. And the Devil has spoken. Eliminate Deacon Rafferty.

Aurelia has followed this dark script before—target, terminate, move on. It's the unyielding price of her deal, and she's never wavered.

Until now.

Deacon Rafferty isn't like the others. Known for his unshakable goodness and quiet charm, he challenges everything she thought she knew about the world—and herself.

As the lines between her fiction and reality begin to blur, Aurelia is drawn deeper into a web of blood, lies, and forbidden desire. Deacon awakens a part of her she thought had been destroyed—a spark of hope, a craving for redemption. But in the city of angels, where darkness and temptation lurk around every corner, Aurelia must face an impossible choice. She must decide whether to fulfill the devil's orders and keep her literary fame and soul's damnation, or risk everything to save Deacon—and herself. And as the stakes grow higher, so does the cost.