One Hundred Facets of Mr. Diamonds Vol.1- Aglow by Emma Green Read Free Book Online

1. A trip out of the ordinary
    I look at the landscape passing by the window. The train has just left the Montparnasse train station and the suburb that is passing in front of me seems as gloomy and grey as my mood. I have no desire to spend the next two days in the vineyards. Tonight, I had planned to stay quietly at home and Marion suggested that we do a movie tomorrow night, like every Friday evening. But Eric has decided otherwise. Eric, my boss, a man of 37 that I love and that has taken me a little under his wing. He is the editor in chief of the site for which I am an intern, a site dedicated to oenology. He works twenty out of twenty-four hours, or almost, and sometimes finds it hard to understand that we are not as passionate as he, Emily and myself. We are only three in the team : Eric writes the paper, Emilia handles the administrative tasks, and I am in training to finish my final year of studying journalism. « My little Amandine, Eric often tells me, if you worked a little more, you would go a long away ! » What I never dared tell him is that I asked for an internship in his small business, because my dream is to start studying oenology once my course is over. It's not that I do not like the work of a journalist, on the contrary, I like it a lot, but I really feel attracted by the world of wine. And as I'm only 22, I think there is still time to change my mind.

    In my TGV car, all the passengers are asleep or daydreaming with vague eyes. I take my iPad out to try do a bit of work. Paris-Angoulême, this is a two and a half hour journey, so I need to work a bit before arriving. Eric has briefed me well before leaving, and put a little pressure on me : « They are very important, these two days, my little Amandine. I have every confidence in you but it is imperative that you get to exchange a few words with Gabriel Diamonds. » Gabriel Diamonds... this man is almost a myth in the world of wine. Multi billionaire, a media mogul who owns almost all the wine publications in the international press market. But above all, this is one of the largest wine lovers in the world and he progressively bought the best vineyards in France. Each year, he organizes a large party at the Château de Bagnolet to raise awareness of the vineyards and to help them grow. The highlight of these two days of festivities is a classical concert that Diamonds puts on for his closest guests. The specialised press is generally invited to the party, but few journalists can attend the concert and approach Diamonds closely. I looked thoughtfully at the beautiful invitation on thick cream paper that I had in my bag, and I ran my finger over the large raised gold letters that spell « Gabriel Diamonds has the pleasure of inviting you. » I have heard so much about this mysterious Mr Diamonds, first from Eric, and then in the dinners, and even in the newspapers. The pleasure...

    Realizing that I do not even know his age or his face, I look for him on Google with an excitement that surprises me. His Wikipedia page tells me : Gabriel Diamonds, 35 years, was born in the United States but came to study in France and never left. I zoom in on my screen for a better view of the photo on the web page and I find a man with a beautiful open and tanned face. His very strong jaw gives him a manly look. Blond hair, impeccably cut, frame a large and wide forehead. The deep blue eyes, have something in them that do not leave me indifferent, and his mouth, divinely fringed by very full lips, open with perfect teeth. Very disturbed by the photo, I start thinking about this little two day trip with some excitement. However, I know that daring to approach Mr Diamonds will be a challenge for me who has always been shy. Eric asked me to prepare several questions in order to integrate a small interview into my paper, I begin to throw some ideas in my notebook but my eyes are constantly drawn to the photo, almost magnetically. My mind wanders, I have a lot of