“Really? Wait, before or after you slayed corporate America?”
“Before.” She giggles. “When I was eight. We took a trip to the aquarium, and I became obsessed with jellyfish. I told my father I was going to study them when I grew up. Live on a research boat somewhere. Travel the world.”
“Oh yeah? What’d he have to say about that?”
“He laughed. Not like, mean, just... dismissive. Told me I'd grow out of it.” She shrugs. “And I did, eventually. But I thinkthat was the first time I realized my future wasn't really mine to decide. He already had plans for me. What I wanted didn't really play a part.”
“Is that why you built your own company? To have something that was yours to control?”
She looks at me, surprised. Like she didn't expect me to connect those dots.
“Partly,” she admits. “When I got to college, I realized I could just... not be part of my family’s business. I could build something separate. Something clean.” Her smile fades and her lips twist. “Took over two decades, and here I am anyway. Talk about irony biting me in the ass, huh?”
I don’t mention how very lucky I think irony is. “You're not the same person you would have been if you'd just stepped into it and accepted a future planned for you.”
“You don’t think so?”
“No. You built something real first. You know who you are outside of all this. You figured yourself out, how to be strong and powerful all on your own.” I hold her gaze. “That matters.”
Her eyes drop to her empty pasta bowl. I wonder if I've pushed too far, said too much.
Then her eyes latch onto mine. “You know, most people don't talk to me like that.”
“Like what?”
“Like I'm a person instead of a position.”
“You are a person.”
“I know. It's just...” She toys with her bun. “Most people want something. A favor, a connection, access to my father. Even before all this, conversations always felt like negotiations. Like everyone was angling for something.”
“And me?”
“You, I haven't figured out yet.” She tilts her head, studying me. “What do you want, Lochlan?”
The question hangs between us. Loaded as a gun.
I could deflect. Make a joke. Keep things light.
But the truth gnaws at my brain. And I’m tired of keeping it bottled up.
“Right now? I want you to finish your dinner. And maybe get more than four hours of sleep tonight.” I pause. “Beyond that... I'm still figuring it out.”
It's honest. Maybe too honest.
She nods slowly. “Fair enough.”
“Hey, have you spoken to Vincenzo?" I ask, shifting the subject. “How's he been?”
Adriana’s face relaxes into a smile. “So great, actually. He’s been talking me through the politics, helping me navigate the men and their personalities. He called this afternoon just to check in and see how I was holding up. He's been like that my whole life. Always looking out for me, making sure I have everything I need. He was always so excited for every milestone I accomplished in my career, one of my biggest cheerleaders. I feel really lucky to have him in my life.”
“He seems like a solid guy. You need good people in your corner. And just so you know, I think you’ve got more allies than you think. Vincenzo will keep them in line until you win them all over. And that will happen sooner than later.”
Something shifts between us again. The air changes. It’s heavier, thicker, and charged by the same electricity from the car.
She looks away, breaking the spell.
“I was thinking of watching something,” she says, hopping off the stool. “Mindless television. Something to help shut my brain off.”
