In a revealing memoir released last year, former First Lady Melania Trump opened up about her first encounter with Donald Trump—and the two qualities that immediately drew her to him.
The pair met in 1998 at New York City’s Kit Kat Klub during Fashion Week. At the time, Melania, a Slovenian model building her career in the U.S., was seated in the VIP section when Donald—who was on a date with another woman—approached her and asked for her number.
But Melania, then 28, had a different idea. “I didn’t give him mine,” she recalled. “I asked for his instead.”
A few days later, she called him, and their first official date took place at his Seven Springs estate in Bedford, New York. In her memoir, Melania described being instantly struck by his “charm and easygoing nature.”
Despite his high-profile persona, she was drawn to his “energy and vitality,” traits that ultimately led to their 2005 wedding and the birth of their son, Barron, a year later.
Now, as Donald Trump prepares for another potential term in office, Melania has made it clear she’s more than just a political spouse. “I have my own thoughts,” she told FOX News, “and my own ‘yes’ and ‘no.'”
