In 1519, the Mayan priest Ahzac learns that his maiden daughter, Ixmy, has surrendered to the love of a white man, thus betraying her destiny, for she was fated to be sacrificed to the gods, accompanied by an offering of gold and a huge black pearl. Infuriated, Ahzac lays a terrible curse on the treasure: “May happiness never come to those who hold this black pearl in their hands!”

In 1987, while Hernan Lazcano and Eliseo Bravo are exploring the Cozumel coral reef, they make an amazing discovery. They find the black pearl, which has lain at the bottom of the sea for five centuries. When Eliseo touches the pearl, unleashing Ahzac’s curse, he is suddenly possessed by an overwhelming greed, which makes him cause his partner’s death. Hernan’s demise will leave his wife Analy and his infant daughter Aymar in abject poverty. 

Eliseo brings the black pearl and the gold back to Veracruz, but the black pearl´s curse is upon him, and he finds his wife María Teresa gone. She has deserted him and their three sons, David, Nicolas and Leonardo.

Eliseo recovers from his pain and, with his new wealth, builds up a prosperous cattle breeding hacienda that lives up to its name: Paradise. However, he keeps the source of his fortune a secret, as well as the dark betrayal caused by the curse of that beautiful pearl.

Twenty years go by. Eliseo has raised his sons with an iron fist. His oldest son, David, turns out to be a disappointment to him, for he shows no interest in the hacienda, so Eliseo puts his trust in his second son, Nicolas, an upstanding lawyer who stands squarely behind his father. Leonardo, his youngest son, has a sensitive, melancholy disposition.

Aymar, Hernan’s daughter, has grown into a beautiful young woman who is proud of her Mayan culture and ancestry. When she and Nicolas meet, they both fall deeply in love with each other.

A ravishing beauty called Maura Duran appears on the scene, passing herself off as Karina Rosemberg. Driven by greed, she weaves a web of lies to get her hands on the Bravo fortune. Using her sensual allure, she seduces the three brothers and turns them against each other. Aymar is caught in the middle of Maura’s intrigue, and separated from Nicolas.

But the love between Nicolas and Aymar has not died. A long and desperate fight awaits them, against Maura’s dark machinations and the curse of the black pearl, with love as their only weapon, a love capable of defeating time and evil itself.