Selena's POV
The porch swing creaked rhythmically as I sat down, the gentle swaying mirroring the turmoil in my chest. Camila was already there, her fingers tracing the intricate patterns of the wooden railing. She seemed lost in thought, her brow furrowed in a way that always made my heart ache.
“Camila,” I began, my voice barely a whisper.
She turned, her eyes meeting mine with their usual warmth. “Hey, love. How was your lunch with Angel?”
I took a deep breath, the words I’d been rehearsing in my head suddenly feeling clunky and awkward. “It was good. It was…important. She said something I needed to hear.”
Camila leaned forward, her hand resting gently on mine. “What’s that?”
My throat tightened, the weight of everything I wanted to say pressing down on me. “It’s just…I know I came with a lot of baggage. And I’m sorry, so sorry, that you had to deal with any of it. You shouldn’t have to. But you did. And I love you so much. I’m grateful that you can love someone as broken as me. Sometimes I feel like I don’t deserve it. Like I don’t even love myself. But even when I don’t, you do. You love me, and you took me in, and Kelly, my little ten-month-old. And you treat her like your own.”
Tears welled up in my eyes, blurring the lines of Camila's face. I swallowed hard, trying to regain my composure. “I just…I can’t imagine my life without you. You’re my everything, Camila.”
The silence stretched, filled only with the chirping of crickets and the gentle sway of the porch swing. When Camila finally spoke, her voice was calm and steady. “I’m going to say it again, Selena. I don’t care about your past. Your past is just that, your past. I love you anyway. And I will spend the rest of my life showing you what love can be. Because you are beautiful to me. You are strong, you are kind, you are a wonderful mother. And I want you to look at yourself and see what I see.”
A wave of emotion washed over me, leaving me breathless. She reached out, her fingers tracing the delicate lines of my cheek. The touch was gentle, yet it held the power to soothe the deepest wounds.
“I love you, Selena,” Camila whispered, her voice thick with emotion. “With every fiber of my being.”
And in that moment, on that porch swing, surrounded by the soft glow of the setting sun, I knew that I was loved. Not despite my past, but because of it. I was loved for all that I was, broken and beautiful, messy and whole. And that love, that fierce, unwavering love, was the most beautiful thing I had ever known.
YOU ARE READING
The Lies We Tell Ourselves
RomantikSelena Spencer thought she had it all: a loving husband, a beautiful daughter, and a comfortable life. But beneath the surface, cracks were beginning to show. Married to the charming Eric, Selena juggles motherhood, her toddler Kelly, and a new job...
