She took a breath and watched as he leaned down over her exposed, lumpy belly.
Very lightly, he kissed it.
He kissed the spot beneath her ribs and all the way down to her navel.
He kissed across her lower stomach, that wretched expanse where the stretch marks raked across her skin, then up and down her sides.
He kissed every inch of her horrible flesh with a tenderness so great and loving, and all the while, her eyes stayed clenched tight.
'I am loved,' a voice inside her declared...
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