Donald Trump bursts into the atrium of Mar-a-Lago, his exclusive Palm Beach resort, and sees his wife, Melania, curled up on a couch in front of the roaring fireplace. A year ago, on Jan. 22, 2005, she and The Donald tied the knot before some 450 guests (including Hillary Clinton, Katie Couric, Simon Cowell and Diddy) at Palm Beach's Episcopal Church of Bethesda-by-the-Sea. Now the Slovenian model is glowing, and it's not merely because of the illuminating flames. Her hands are hugging her pregnant belly—she's about seven months along—and she looks up at her husband and smiles contentedly. “There's my baby!” Donald says from across the room as he rushes toward her. Then he corrects himself. “I mean… there are my babies !”
Impending fatherhood obviously hasn't curbed the enthusiasm of the Manhattan-based real-estate tycoon, stern taskmaster of TV's The Apprentice, budding fashion mogul (his line of shirts and ties have proved to be big sellers at Macy's) and relentless self-promoter (“I have the hottest-selling clothing line,” he says. “I have two No. 1 bestsellers”). Recently he shot down a rumor that he'd also be running for governor of New York this year. But even though Trump, 59, already has four children by his two former wives, Ivana and Marla, the news that Melania, 35, was expecting did take him a bit aback. “He came home [one day last August], and I told him he'd be a daddy,” says Melania, laughing. “And his reaction was… at first he needed to take it in. It was a real surprise. And then he was very happy.” Donald gently corrects her. “I expected we were going to have children, so I wasn't totally surprised,” he says. “But I was surprised by the speed of it. It happened very quickly.”
Up until now, the couple have reveled in being a twosome. Although they occasionally go out to the movies (most recently, Memoirs of a Geisha), they prefer to spend evenings nesting at home, either at Mar-a-Lago or in their triplex apartment at Trump Tower in New York, often after eating a dinner prepared by Melania. “She cooks beautifully,” says her spouse. But not Donald. “Number one, I don't think it's my job to cook,” he says. “Number two, it's just not my thing.”
But doesn't he ever bring his wife coffee in bed in the mornings? “No, I don't do that,” says Trump. “I get up very early—5 o'clock,” he explains, “read the papers, see the news on television. And by the time it's 6:30, I'm ready to go [to work]. Melania is asleep.” Even when she's up, “she lets me have my space, which is great,” he says. His wife agrees. “We are very independent, both of us,” says Melania, who lately has been rising at 7 a.m. to oversee construction of the baby's nursery in Trump Tower.
Donald “will be a fantastic dad,” says Melania, although “I don't expect him to walk down Fifth Avenue with a stroller.” Trump agrees he's likely to be a hands-off father in that respect. Although he was present when Melania had a sonogram (boy or girl? “It's a secret,” she says), he says he won't be shopping for baby clothes with her. Nor does he expect to be at her side in the delivery room. “I think it's easier for Melania if I'm not there,” he says.
For the first few months, Melania plans to stay close to home. “But eventually we will take the baby with us,” she says. Though she hopes to resume her modeling career, she says she'll be picky about assignments, taking only the ones “that I'm passionate about.” Whether she's working or not, Melania has already hired a full-time nanny. Donald, meanwhile, will still be firing: “NBC just signed me for two more seasons of The Apprentice,” he says. “Number 5 is being completed now in New York. In June or so, I'm going to California. Number 6 is going to be shot all in Los Angeles. That's a pretty big change right there.” Still, don't expect the Trumps to do anything different on their first anniversary. “We'll spend it alone together; we won't have people around. That's the best,” says Donald. “I feel really comfortable in a bathrobe.”
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