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semel amissa fiducia, difficilis recuperatio — once trust is lost, its difficult to regain
WATCHING REX WITH ALBA over the next few days was something Camila didn't think she could ever unsee. The two of them had bonded quickly and when she and Rex had talked about their daughter, he seemed to have taken everything she'd said into account. Alba looked the happiest she'd been in ages and it surprised Camila at how well Rex seemed to be with kids. She would find herself just watching them, a faint smile on her face, before she'd catch herself and look away. She trusted Rex with their daughter but not with her feelings. Camila wasn't certain where she and Rex stood and she wasn't even sure she wanted to know. All she knew was that Alba was glad to finally have her father and Camila loved how Alba seemed to look at Rex.
Despite this though, the fear that Rex would leave and never come back again, remained. She didn't want Alba to get hurt and disappointed when Rex was going to leave. She feared that Alba's new found relationship with her father would bring an unwanted grief for her daughter should he never return. This got worse when Rex told her that he had to go.
"Shocker." She mutters.
"Mila, you knew I wouldn't be able to stay long." He says.
Alba had since gone to bed, leaving the two adults alone. The sun had set, so the moon shone into the dimly lit living room. Camila had already activated the blinds but it still shone through the gaps.
"I knew." She replies, "I just worry that if you never come back, Alba would be rather upset. She's grown quite fond of you."
"And what about you?" He asks, his voice quiet as he stares at her.
Camila shifts slightly under his gaze. It had been a while since she'd experienced him flirting with her and she hated the things it did to her. She couldn't bring herself to trust him again. Not with her. Alba was his daughter, as much as she was hers. But Camila had more of a history with him and she didn't know if she'd be able to trust him like she used to, like her daughter seems to. It still didn't stop her from wanting him, that tiny little bit.
"I don't expect you to come back." She says, ignoring the feelings, "I only want you to for our daughter's sake. Or I'll have to deal with her upset."
Rex sighs and looks away, "How long is it going to take for you to trust me again?"
"Prove yourself multiple times and I'll think about it." She answers.
"So a long time?"
Camila nods at him. He returns his gaze to her, watching her through his lashes as she picks a bit of lint off her dress.
She looks back up at him once it's gone and immediately notices him watching her.
