Celina ran a trembling hand over her face, her chest tightening under the weight of her own pain.

“And the worst part… is that I blamed myself,” she whispered. “I punished myself every single day. I told myself I deserved everything that happened. Because I gave myself to César before marriage—because I disobeyed everything my parents taught me. My mother always said sex was only meant to happen after the wedding. And because… I married a man they never would’ve approved of. I betrayed their values—and so, I believed I deserved all of it.”

She caressed her belly softly.

“When I slept with you… I knew I’d done something wrong. I felt horrible afterward because, on paper, I was still married. A part of me screamed that it was a sin. But the truth is, he and I had been separated for a long time—physically, emotionally, in every possible way. The only thing left was a last name—and even that meant nothing anymore.”

Her gaze fell to the water, her voice breaking.

“He used to say no other m