Beautiful When You Don't Try

Chapter 67

That was very much Lauren. However, like Clara had said, the younger brunette was falling out of the habit but Camila could remember things from their past that fit perfectly with Clara's words. "Where exactly are we going with this?" She had forgotten in her uneasiness with the topic.

"You asked me if Michael was always this bad and I told you no, comparing him to Lauren so you could see that what they project isn't always what they feel. They are deep individuals who rarely let their true feelings be known."

"I'm pretty sure Michael has no issues letting people know how he feels."

"You can go by what you've seen and heard about in high school, or you can go by what his wife of over thirty years is telling you. That's your call."

Camila mashed her lips between her teeth as she thought. She didn't like how Clara was already defending the man and completely oblivious to the fact that she was. "Why didn't you stand up for Lauren when he kicked her out at?"

"I was scared." Clara replied with a hint of sorrow in her voice.

"Scared of what exactly?"

"I'm not trying to justify how he has treated her over the years, if you are concerned about that. I was just trying to give you a better understanding of how he thinks. I wasn't saying the two are identical or act the same, just that they have similarities."

Camila leaned down on the counter, resting her chin in her hands as she watched the older woman dodge the question. "I know that and I understand it. Now I'm asking why you were scared."

Clara's eyes reddened a little as she held back her tears and the diva was beginning to wonder if she was really ready to stand up tonight and not go running back to Michael because she was scared of him. "If Michael kicked out his sixteen-year-old, defenseless, and pregnant daughter onto the streets because he was angry with her choice, what do you think he would have done with me?" Camila sat up and rethought her assumption on why Clara was tearing up. "I know, it was selfish. I sacrificed my daughter for myself. I watched her pack her bags and leave so I wouldn't have to pack my own."

Camila had to fight the urge to verbally agree with her, causing the woman to feel worse in the process. This was a very different Clara sitting in front of her than the one they were discussing. She needed to remind herself of that and apparently, she needed to remind Clara of that too. "You're here now and Lauren has forgiven you for the past."

Clara flipped her head to toss her hair out of her face as she wiped away the tear that escaped. "But I won't ever forgive myself. All I can do is try and make up for it."

"And you're doing that." The diva assured her. "You're a good mother. A good mother to Lauren now, and to me. You've taken me under your wing and taught me all of the things my dads couldn't about marriage from a woman's perspective. You've already started teaching me so many things about raising a family that I wouldn't have been able to find in a book or online. You are nothing like the woman we were just talking about. You've changed for the better."

"I'll agree with that." Lauren stated, joining the pair and wrapping her arms around her mother from behind, pulling her into a light hug. "I can definitely agree with that."

The buzzer rang and all three women stared at the elevator for a minute. "I guess I'll go get him." Camila offered.

"No." Both brunettes cried out in unison.

"Yes." The diva retorted, her mind already made up. Her approach to Michael Jauregui, her soon to be father-in-law whether he liked it or not, was going to be killing him with kindness. "If you think I am in danger then you can watch from the window to make sure he doesn't kidnap me."