She shows up precisely on time—for breakfast. At ten o’clock on a Saturday morning. In Midtown Manhattan. (This alone tells us she is not your average supermodel.) But wait. Adriana Lima, the Brazilian beauty, the ninety-seventh highest-paid famous person in the world according to Forbes, the reason our nephews spank away to Victoria’s Secret catalogs, has plenty of surprises. (Unfortunately, no surprises about her famous ex-boyfriends: We are told ahead of time that any questions about Lenny Kravitz, the model-collecting rocker with whom she was allegedly involved, are “off-limits.“ Ditto for Derek Jeter.) But did we mention she’s a virgin? Hey, that’s her story—and she’s stickin’ to it.
How old are you, anyway?
Um, my age, I’m gonna leave, like, free for everybody to think about. I’m gonna leave it a secret, so when I get old, nobody will know.
**Did you always plan on being a supermodel? **
When I started, I was too young to know what I wanted. But today I would like to be a doctor. I want to be a pediatry…how do you call it, pediatrician?
**Yeah. Pediatrician. So you like kids? **
Not really. Depends. If they act well behaved, yes. When they start screaming, I don’t like them. But this is my plan. I might change my mind. For now, God has given me a lot of work.
**I take it you’re religious? **
Yes! I am Catholic. [she pulls out the cardboard scapular hanging around her neck, under her big gray sweater]
**Wow. A scapular. Do you go to church? **
Of course! Every Sunday.
**Is there anything in the teachings of the Catholic Church that you don’t agree with? **
No.
**Are you pro-life? **
What do you mean, pro-life?
**How do you feel about abortion? **
I think it’s a crime.
Okay, so let’s get started. You know the theme of this issue, right? Love, Sex, and
** Madness—**
Uh-huh. Yes. God.
**Which category do you want to talk about first? **
Love.
**I figured. Okay. Have you been in love a lot? **
I’m in love now.
**Were you ever before? **
No! I believe love just happens once. You can be mistaken, you can think you are in love, but after a while you discover that you’re really not. Real love is different.
**Are you a one-guy woman? **
Of course! I’m a Catholic.
**Look, I’m Catholic, too, but there’s a lot of things about the church that make it hard to date within its rules, don’t you think? **
Like what?
Birth control, premarital sex…
Well, you know, sex is just for after marriage.
**Say what? **
Sex is for after marriage.
**Are you saying you’re not going to have sex before marriage? **
Exactly.
**You mean you’ve never had sex? **
That’s why I have to say.
**You sure about this? **
Yes.
**How do men respond to the fact that you plan to, you know, wait? **
I don’t care. They have to respect that this is my choice. If there’s no respect, that means they don’t want me.
**Who was your first boyfriend? **
I have just three boyfriends in my life.
**Get out. **
And this is the third one now.
**Did you ever have your heart broken? **
By my two es, yes.
**They dumped you? **
Noooo. They did not dump me. But… It just did not worked. It did not work. You know?
**Were you depressed? **
No, not depressed. I don’t have depression.
**You didn’t crawl into bed for a week and cry your eyes out? **
Well, I felt sad, you know, but what am I gonna do? What’s crying and crawling and locking myself in gonna do for me? Nothing.
**So except for the man you’re so in love with, who is your idea of a really hot guy? **
My man.
**Besides him. **
I can’t look at another guy! I can’t. I swear. I’m blocked. I cannot look.
But how do guys—when you’re out and you’re at a club or a restaurant or an event, how do guys approach—
Don’t approach me.
**They don’t approach you? **
No, I say: Do not.
**I know you don’t sleep with anyone, but just for the sake of argument: Who would you rather sleep with, Bush or Clinton? **
Ohmigod. They’re too old for me!
**Any other thoughts about sex? **
I’m not very experienced, okay?
**I guess we don’t have much to talk about, sexwise? **
I don’t think so.
**So…any beauty tips? **
I don’t work out.
**And is all of you natural? **
No, it’s all fake. From my hair to my toes to my nails. Everything’s fake. Everything! Even my heart is fake.
**Okay, got it. But if you could improve one thing about yourself, what would it be? **
Patience. I’m very impatient. I like everything now. I want it all now.
**Except sex. **
I’m talking about work.
**Of course. **
No more details!