Nikki Bella is "scared" to get engaged again and to start planning a family after her very "public breakup" with John Cena.
Nikki Bella and Artem Chigvintsev
The 35-year-old retired wrestler has been dating 'Dancing with the Stars' professional Artem Chigvintsev for almost a year now, but she has admitted her split from ex-fiance John Cena last year "scarred" her "a lot" and that's why she is cautious about taking the next steps in her relationship.
Speaking at the Girl Up #GirlHero Awards, she confessed:
"I'll admit, having a public breakup can scar you.
"It scarred me a lot and that's why at times, I'll post Artem and then I won't for a while. It scared me about marriage, it scared me about kids."
The brunette beauty would love to get married and have kids one day and says she is working on "healing" those scars.
She continued: "It's two things that I really wanted in my life and now I'm so timid of it, which kind of sucks.
"But I definitely have those scars and I'm working on healing them and doing work on myself weekly."
Nikki recently gushed about how she couldn't be happier with her beau, because he allows her to completely be herself.
She said: "I get to just be me. It's kind of like my soul gets to have no filter, no makeup. Like, I fully live in my truth with him.
"There's no walking on eggshells. And it's amazing because I never have that fear of, 'Is he not gonna like me because I'm this?' or 'Am I afraid to say this thing?'
"He just loves every part of me. And it makes me feel beautiful, but not just on the outside, so much on the inside."
Meanwhile, Nikki previously confessed she "freaked" and drove off during her first date with Artem when she spotted paparazzi nearby.
She said: "Our first date was at the farmer's market in Studio City, and I had no idea that it was filled with paparazzi. So Artem and I are, like, looking at vegetables - and I honestly think he was picking up tomatoes - and I see a paparazzi in this corner, and one in the other corner and I just freaked. I walked away from him, all the way to my car that was parked at Von's and I drove off. And poor Artem, I get a text like, 'Uhh, where did you go?' I didn't even say anything."
The 37-year-old dancer admitted he was worried he'd messed up so early into their date as he saw her "almost running" from the market.
He said: "I'm [with] a basket of vegetables, just standing there, thinking, 'Did she [go] somewhere? What happened?' And I'm seeing, like, a shadow crossing the road and almost running. So I'm like, 'Did I do something wrong?'"
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