DESPITE MY LACK of interest in the job, there is no doubt that Mr Rijas exerts a fascination over me that I find hard to understand. I liked his appearance, but I was even more taken by his manner, the self-confidence he displayed that made him seem indestructible, and his lack of fear when faced with challenges. I thought that his determination grew when confronted with a blunt ‘no’. He took rejection personally, and was happy if he could change it to a committed ‘yes’. That is what makes him tick. I was a ‘no’ from start to finish, and he was determined to get me to change at any cost, by any means whatsoever.
Today he called me as promised. But his conversation went off in a completely non-professional direction.
‘My partner and I have reached our decision. But there’s a problem, which I’d like to discuss with you personally.’
‘What sort of problem?’ I asked, my curiosity aroused, even though I was pretty sure I wouldn’t be of any help.
Jaime adopted the tone of someone taking me into his confidence, even though he still hadn’t explained what all this was about.
‘I think you’re someone I can talk openly to. But I need to see you for that. Do you mind if we just meet and talk?’
It all seemed very odd to me, but I agreed. I suppose that deep down I wanted to see him again. I still don’t understand how I allowed myself to be caught in that spider’s web which any outside observer could have seen would be fatal. I have always had a headstrong nature, and like challenges.
‘How about if I pick you up tomorrow evening around seven?’
‘Wouldn’t it be better to meet in your office?’ I asked, not liking the personal twist all this was taking.
‘I would prefer not to. I need a more neutral space to put the matter to you. Things are too busy here: consultants are coming in and out the whole time. I’m always being asked to do things. All the usual business stuff. That’s why I prefer somewhere quieter. I’ll take you for a drink – without any ulterior motives, of course.’
‘OK, that’s fine.’
I couldn’t help wondering why he had mentioned ulterior motives. He knew my address from my CV, so we agreed to meet outside my place at seven the next evening.
I got in his car and we started touring the centre of Barcelona looking for somewhere to park. I had not said much up to then, but had listened to him talking about what had happened during the day, and how much his company stood to make that month. According to him, the business was a huge success; he was so full of enthusiasm I began to wonder what kind of problem a man like him that everything seemed to shine on could possibly have. He suggested we went down to Maremagnum, where we could park easily and without the threat of being towed away. I agreed.
We went up to the top floor of the shopping centre, which is open to the skies, and where there are an incredible number of bars trying to attract customers from the crowds that could easily fill a football stadium. After a short wait, we found two seats on a terrace next to a mini-golf. We ordered two gin and tonics.
‘What did you have to tell me that was so important, and why have you brought me to a place like this?’
I could tell Jaime was rather taken aback by my audacity, but he rushed to reassure me.
‘First of all, why don’t you call me Jaime? And don’t stand on ceremony with me.’
I nodded in agreement. If he was going to confide in me, we should be on first-name terms, and besides, he had asked me so politely!
‘OK. Well then, I’m an economist, I’m forty-nine and I’ve always been a businessman. I have very clear ideas about what I should and should not do. In all those years, this is the first time something like this has happened to me, so I thought it would make sense to talk it over with someone who would come to it without preconceived ideas – and that’s why I wanted to talk to you.’
‘Me?’ I exclaimed, pouring more tonic into my gin.
It was a surprisingly cold night, and as he spoke Jaime rubbed his hands to warm up. His gestures were so florid it was as though he were about to speak to some huge public meeting.
‘Yes, you!’ he said, pointing a finger at my heart.
‘Why me? We have only met for a job interview; we don’t know each other at all. What makes you think I’m the right person to give you advice?’
‘Precisely because we don’t know each other. That means your opinion will be all the more objective. Something tells me your advice could be very helpful. Don’t ask me to explain why, because I couldn’t. But I’m convinced you can help me.’
‘Fine, but that depends on what the problem is. How am I supposed to help?’ I asked him again, running out of patience.
Jaime was so calm he didn’t seem as if anything could worry him, but he replied, ‘I’ve met someone at work, but given the fact that I run the company, I’m not sure how I should behave towards her. In the past I’ve always been able to control my impulses, especially in a work context. Above all, it’s a question of ethics. That’s what I’ve always thought. But now the situation is getting beyond me, and I don’t know what to do.’
‘So how can I help?’
I still didn’t have the faintest idea what this man wanted from me. He took his time, sipping his drink, and then putting it back on the table and playing with the cocktail stick.
‘What would you advise?’
‘How should I know? Who is this person? Does she work for your company?’
‘No, but I’m in contact with her indirectly. I don’t know her very well. She works for someone else. But the worst of it is I’ve fallen head over heels in love with her.’
‘Does she know?’
‘I think she’s an intelligent woman, and she must have realized there’s something going on. But so far she hasn’t made any comment, and I haven’t said anything about how I feel. But these things are bound to show, aren’t they? I reckon that deep down she doesn’t want to face reality, because she’s afraid to.’
‘Well, if you really want my opinion, I think the first thing you should do is talk to her. Perhaps she hasn’t even realized how you feel.’
‘No, I think she knows perfectly well what’s going on. But it’s a very delicate situation. How would you react, if you were her?’
‘Well, if I were in that situation and I liked the man, I wouldn’t give it a second thought. It depends on the work relationship you two have. I find it hard to be completely sincere with you. Not everyone would take risks like I do.’
‘Aha, thanks for your honesty, anyway.’
He seemed truly grateful.
‘Why don’t you talk to her?’
‘I’ve tried, but I can’t find the words, so whenever I come to the crucial moment I start to talk about work instead.’
‘What are you afraid of?’
‘Her telling me she doesn’t feel the same about me.’
I was surprised at this unguarded reply. On the few occasions I had met him, Jaime had always given the impression of being in control and of being very sure of himself. Now it seemed that wasn’t true at all.
‘But if you don’t talk openly to her, you’ll never get anywhere. Things will stay stuck where they are now.’
‘You’re right, and that’s why I wanted to talk to you. I knew your opinion would help a lot.’
I must admit, I was pleased he had turned to me. All women like that. But I still did not understand why he had such confidence in me.
‘Well, how about going to have something to eat? I’m hungry, and since we’re talking like this, why not do it at a proper table? I know a restaurant near here where you can get really fresh seafood.’
This sounded like the kind of invitation a friend might make, so I again said yes. What Jaime was trying to do was to make me drop my guard so that we could be more friendly; when I had seen him at his office I had always been very distant.
He paid for the drinks and we walked to the restaurant, which was about five hundred metres away towards the Olympic Village. The owner, who appeared to know Jaime well, greeted him warmly and quickly found us a table although the place looked full. He offered us an aperitif, and Jaime asked me if it was all right for him to order seafood platters for both of us.
‘A nice plate of seafood to cheer us up, don’t you think?’
I love seafood, so I was all for it. It seemed we had similar tastes. He ordered a bottle of the best champagne, and proposed a toast to friendship. It seemed more like he was trying to impress and seduce me. For a while we just chatted, and then he started again with more personal questions.
‘Were you really annoyed the other day when I asked if you had a boyfriend?’
‘I was a bit shocked,’ I said frankly. ‘I could understand why you asked whether I was married or not. But why should it matter about a boyfriend?’
‘It was very important for me to know.’
‘I know. You told me you wanted the person you took on to be free. If that is what you’re looking for, I think you’re going to find it difficult.’
‘Well, that wasn’t the real reason.’
I put my fork down.
‘Ah, no? Why was it then?’
‘It was to find out whether I could ask you out tonight,’ replied Jaime, going on eating. ‘If you’d said you had a boyfriend, I’d have tried another tack.’
‘What?’
I was left speechless, unable to react.
‘Yes. If you did have a boyfriend, I would have pursued you anyway.’
By this time we had drunk quite a lot, so I thought it was the drink talking. I suddenly felt uncomfortable, and could not help laughing nervously.
‘You wouldn’t have been put off by my having a boyfriend?’
‘On the contrary, I would have done all I could to get you to leave him,’ he said, as self-assured as he had been at our first meeting.
‘What are you talking about?’ I said, still laughing nervously. ‘Haven’t you just been telling me you’re in love with another woman?’
I couldn’t understand a thing, and thought he must be completely crazy.
‘Yes, it’s true, I am in love with a woman.’
‘So I see,’ I said sarcastically. ‘You’re in love, but that doesn’t stop you trying to pick me up.’
He burst out laughing.
‘How silly can you be?’ he said affectionately. ‘You don’t get it, do you?’
‘No, the truth is I don’t understand you. You’re like all men. You have a woman you’re in love with, yet you can’t take your eyes off the others. I really don’t get it.’
I no longer cared what he thought of me. I had decided that after this conversation I never wanted to see him again in my life. He was obviously a dangerous self-obsessed fool. All of a sudden, Jaime stopped laughing and called the waiter over. He asked for another bottle of champagne, then did not say another word until our glasses were filled again. He raised his and said, ‘Here’s to you, Val, the woman who is driving me crazy.’
He stared at my glass, expecting me to raise it too, but I was so dumbfounded I couldn’t even move. What he had said was the last thing I had expected, and no one could have been more surprised. He asked me again to drink with him, and in the end I raised my glass like a zombie.
‘That’s what I wanted to tell you. That’s why I asked you to have dinner with me. I’m crazy about you,’ he said, craning his neck towards me across the table. ‘You’re the woman I’m in love with.’
I sat there open-mouthed, while he downed his entire glass. I couldn’t swallow a sip of mine.
‘Phew! I’m glad that’s over,’ he said, obviously relieved. ‘Now I’ve got it off my chest. I just had to talk to you.’
I still couldn’t believe my ears, but just sat there staring at the champagne bubbles rising to the surface in my glass.
All of a sudden Jaime looked sad, and then he said, ‘I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to upset you. I’m really sorry.’
He asked for the bill. I still felt very strange: I’m not used to someone I hardly know declaring his love for me. He paid and we left in silence.
‘I’ll take you home. I hope you don’t mind. When I go out with someone, I like to see them safely home.’
My head was starting to ache. I had drunk too much, and had no idea what to say to him. I decided to let him have it his way. When we reached my building, I was surprised again when he said good night and left at once. But I did nothing to stop him, because I was still stunned by his sudden declaration, and needed some time to take it in and recover.
Almost a month has gone by since we started going out together. After his declaration, Jaime did not call again except once to tell me that if I wanted it, the job was mine, whether or not I was interested in him romantically. I turned the offer down: it was clear after the dinner that I couldn’t work in his firm, and that I would have to look for something else, because I had decided to go out with him. It was either one thing or the other. I have to admit I was impressed by the way he had taken the plunge and declared his love for me; but I was equally impressed by the discretion he had shown afterwards. He seemed to have understood perfectly that I didn’t want to be pressured, and in so doing he was creating just the right kind of climate for me to fall in love with him. He had also seen from the start that I was not interested in the job. He must have thought I was a very self-possessed woman with very definite views, someone who can only respond if she doesn’t feel too hassled. In fact, I’m the perfect prey for any daring hunter.
Since then we’ve seen each other on several occasions, during which he has taken it for granted that I’m eventually bound to fall into his arms. He wants me to understand quite clearly that he is very sure of himself in that respect, and that sooner or later it will happen. I am starting to like him more and more, but I haven’t been to bed with him yet, as I usually do. This time I prefer to wait.
We agreed to meet today just to talk. Jaime said he wanted to tell me all about his life, because he didn’t want to have any secrets from me. He told me the story of his marriage to his ex-wife, who now has breast cancer, and confessed that he had really loved her, but could never manage to stay faithful, and one day she had had enough and left him.
He wanted to show me his weak points one by one, like someone going through a manual. That was also part of his elaborate strategy. And the way he told the story meant I could not stay unaffected. He still spoke with great authority, but it was as if he was very sorry for what he had done. I could feel myself being gradually seduced by his personality – by his failings above all, by the way he treated his women, all mixed together with an unconsciously paternal attitude. He told me that for seven years he had been in a relationship with an ex-model, Carolina. He said his passion for her had known no bounds, and that this relationship too had come to an end because he was unfaithful with another woman – who turned out to be none other than Carolina’s best friend. I soon realized the message he was trying to convey with every word he spoke: will you be the woman who can tame me? That was how he lured me: now he is a challenge for me.
He also talked a lot about his two children, whom he only sees at weekends. I found his pride at being a father very touching. I suppose this was because it was a facet of his character I had not known until now, and also because as I approached thirty my female hormones were pushing me towards being a mother.
Today I made love to Jaime for the first time since I met him. He came to my flat, which I welcomed him into with open arms, and we made love on the kitchen table. There was nothing out of this world about it. He seemed very tired, and I can understand that however much we’d like to be, we’re not always a hundred per cent. I must admit though I was rather disappointed. I thought it would be much more romantic. It only took five minutes, and for four of them I was trying to convince him to use a contraceptive.
‘Do you think a man of my age uses a condom? It’s total crap!’
In the end, he gave in. But I know it didn’t exactly please him.