When a burned-out Michelin chef crashes at his mountain inn, Klaus never planned to put him to work. But Nico's bratty attitude and wasted talent are too much to ignore. Klaus Reinhardt has been running his remote mountain inn alone since his wife died five years ago. He's good at keeping busy—cooking for guests, maintaining the property, and pretending he's not lonely. At forty-eight, he's convinced his chance at happiness is long gone. Then Nico Moretti shows up in the rain with nothing but a backpack and a mountain of shame. The twenty-six-year-old Italian was once a Michelin-starred pastry chef before he burned out spectacularly. Now he's running from his past, refusing to cook, and hiding in Klaus's inn. Klaus sees right through Nico's defenses. The boy needs structure. Discipline. Someone to make him stop running. So Klaus puts him to work in the kitchen—and refuses to let him quit. What starts as punishment becomes something neither of them expected. In the heat of the kitchen, Klaus teaches Nico that imperfection can be beautiful. That pleasure doesn't require guilt. That surrender to the right man can feel like coming home. Soon Klaus is feeding Nico more than just dinner. And Nico discovers that melting under his Daddy's touch is exactly what he's been craving all along.