I smiled so wide. I loved when things got to this stage. When the charm would rise, the tension would build, but the execution hadn’t quite come into play—not even close. In some ways, the chase with charm was just as much of a rush as sex. In other ways, of course not, but goodness, the rush of seeing denial turn into interest was unbelievably erotic.
“There is no denying, Adrian, that you are very charismatic,” she said. She didn’t add anything else, but I knew in the back of her mind there was a “but.”But… he can’t be trusted. But… he will leave you out to dry. But… you’re not Sarah and he’s not Cassius.I kept my mouth shut. I’d learned long ago that when you had a woman having an internal shift, something to take her from defiant to curious, the best thing you could say was nothing at all. You’d have to speak eventually, of course, but why force things?
“But,” she finally said. “Remember the nature of our relationship and our work. I have a very pressure-packed job, and I have no room for mistakes.”
I eyed the diamonds on my desk. This seemed as good a moment as any to bring out one of my favorite facts, somethingthat wowed most women or at least made them aware of how smart I was.
“Do you know how diamonds are formed, Delilah?” I said.
“I have an idea about it.”
“Allow me to refresh your memory. With immense pressure, high heat—almost a spicy level of heat, you could say—and a long, drawn-out process that morphs raw carbon into something unbelievably brilliant and valuable.”
I let the words sit for just a moment—not too long, lest Delilah reject them—but long enough that every single one of those words settled in.
“The work that you are doing will get the best results if you let yourself embrace the immense pressure, the high heat, and the long, drawn-out process. Of course, you might slip up here and there. Diamonds in the rough, you know? But that doesn’t mean you exit because it’s too hot.”
More silence followed. I could all but hear the gears turning in Delilah’s head. God, what I would have given to know all of her internal thoughts. I had zero doubt that she was at least open-minded to this whole ordeal.
But would she make it fun and put up a fight? Or fold sooner than expected?
“I am not raw material for you, Adrian,” she said. “I respect the work you have done and understand the intensity of both of our jobs. But I am not yours to mold. I am simply a journalist doing my job. You are a businessman doing yours. To whatever extent our paths cross, it will not be with the purpose of manipulating or forming each other.”
I smirked.
“Of course,” I said.
Inside, I was dancing with joy. If all you did was read Delilah’s words on a transcription, you’d think there was no chance of anything ever happening.
But if you were on the phone with me, if you were listening to that tone of voice, if you heard the slight hesitations, the moments of accentuation and stumbling…
Well, let’s just say it felt urgent that our next interview take place in person. But to posit that too directly would risk, indeed, rushing the process of making my own little diamond.
After all, I wanted my Queen of Diamonds, not some Five of Diamonds. I would have only the best.
“But I am curious what kind of pressure formed you, the so-called and self-named King of Diamonds.”
“What did you say?” I growled, shaken from the delight of my thoughts.
“You asked me what motivates me. But I’m not the subject of the story. I’m not even a character in the story. I’m just an observer who writes about the story. You are, at the very least, one of the main characters if not the main character.”
“Well, Delilah…”
I caught myself. I almost said she would be my main character, but damn, that would have been a mistake. Impressive, really, that Delilah almost got me to crack. I guess she really was fucking good at her job.
This would be fun.
“Hours in the office, countless come-to-Jesus meetings with my brothers?—”
“That’s not what I meant, and you know it,” Delilah said. “I don’t want cliché business answers. I want to knowyou,Adrian Vale. Not you, Adrian Vale, CFO and billionaire. I want to knowyou,period.”
Interesting.
No one had ever asked me a question like that. I really didn’t know how to respond. It was almost uncomfortable, yet strangely touching in a way that I didn’t want to admit.
I took several seconds to answer.
“I… would need several more hours to answer that,” I said. I wasn’t trying to set up something. I was serious. I hadn’t done that kind of internal reflection; I never had time to.
