“She’s twenty… Axel’s age. Like a daughter’s age. I can’t… I shouldn’t…” Charles Langford reminded himself firmly. He was a man who had built his life on control, success, and discipline. At thirty-eight, he was a wealthy widower, a devoted father, and a powerful businessman who had spent nearly a decade focused on raising his son, Axel—now eighteen and nearing nineteen—after the tragic death of his wife, Isabelle. Love, for Charles, had always been complicated. It was a careful balance of grief, responsibility, and propriety. Over the years, he had resigned himself to a life of restraint, believing his heart was no longer open to the unpredictable nature of desire. Until he met Dulce Ramirez. A rising star in the modeling world, Dulce was young, vibrant, and effortlessly captivating. From the moment Charles first saw her at a Paris fashion show, he found himself unable to look away. She moved down the runway with poise and confidence beyond her years, commanding attention without trying. Something stirred in his chest—an unfamiliar warmth, thrilling and terrifying all at once. It was a feeling he hadn’t experienced since Isabelle’s death. Their encounter was brief, but unforgettable. Back home, fate brought them together again. Dulce appeared at a local fashion show in Charles’s hometown, and once more, their worlds collided. Seeing her again was both exhilarating and dangerous. Charles tried to convince himself it was a coincidence, that the pull he felt would fade. Instead, it grew stronger. He found himself thinking of her incessantly, drawn to her presence in ways he knew he should resist. What complicated everything further was Axel. Dulce had once been Axel’s schoolmate. They shared common friends and shared memories. Axel had harbored a quiet crush on her for years—one he had never dared confess until seeing her again reignited feelings he could no longer ignore. Axel’s affection was innocent yet intense. He admired Dulce’s beauty, her talent, her spirit, and secretly hoped she might one day see him the same way. But Axel was unaware that his father felt the same pull. The tension between the three of them reached a breaking point at Axel’s nineteenth birthday celebration, where Dulce was invited. Charles, torn between business obligations and being present for his son, found himself stealing glances at Dulce as she moved gracefully among the guests. Her laughter, her confidence, the way she lit up every space she entered—it all ignited emotions he struggled desperately to control. Dulce, too, was caught in the storm. She felt an attraction to Charles she couldn’t rationalize—one that both frightened and excited her. Inwardly, she began using Axel’s innocent affection as a shield, a way to hide her own forbidden feelings toward his father. But instead of easing the tension, it only deepened the emotional complexity binding them together. Charles found solace in Dulce’s presence—her youthful energy paired with a wisdom that surprised him. Dulce, in turn, found comfort in Charles, in the way he listened, understood, and saw her beyond the spotlight. Their interactions appeared innocent on the surface, yet beneath them pulsed an undeniable, electric tension. Their feelings were irresistible. Like an addictive sweet Christmas candy—tempting, forbidden, and impossible to forget.