BEING a mom makes Jennylyn Mercado “feel grownup, complete.”
Jennylyn Mercado feels sexiest, not necessarily when she’s wearing those form-fitting outfits that flaunt her curves, but when her 6-year-old son, Alex Jazz, is by her side.
“I just love having him around, because he makes me feel happy and beautiful,” she told reporters at the recent circus-themed launch of Avon Fashions’ new intimate apparel collection, “Fantasie,” which the GMA 7 star endorses.
Jennylyn, last year’s Metro Manila Film Festival best actress for “English Only, Please,” also believes that being a mother has given her a confidence boost. “I feel like a grownup, that I’m complete. I have less fears in life now,” she said.
While she’s been hailed as the country’s sexiest woman (according to a men’s magazine), the 28-year-old celeb admitted that she’s still not comfortable being tagged as such. Neither did she foresee that she will someday model for lingerie.
Simple girl
“I see myself as a simple girl and actress. I started wholesome in show biz,” she recalled, adding that she doesn’t let Jazz, whom she had with ex-boyfriend Patrick Garcia, see her provocative photos. “I don’t let him see the magazines. He doesn’t know anything about that yet.”
Aside from this endorsement, Jennylyn is also doing a new Kapuso drama series “My Faithful Husband”; two movies, “Prenup” and “Walang Forever”; as well as a cooking show (“CDO Sarap with Family”) and reality program (that is still under wraps).
Despite her busy schedule, she said she makes sure to spend quality time with Jazz.
“My son is an early riser. So in the morning I always play with him before I go to work,” said Jennylyn, who dreams of walking down the aisle one day.
Is her son already looking for a father figure? “Not yet. I will let you know,” she said, laughing.
Show biz followers speculate that she and Dennis Trillo have reunited. Though they don’t deny that they do go out from time to time, they have yet to confirm that they’re a couple.
“As much as possible, we don’t want to discuss it,” Jennylyn related at a press conference for “My Faithful Husband,” which she will top-bill with Dennis. “But I want to keep whatever we have—friendship or whatever. Dennis is a good person, loving and responsible.”
In the new primetime TV series, which will air weekdays starting Aug. 10, Jennylyn plays Mel, a woman who cheats on her husband Emman (Dennis) with a former lover. Directed by Joyce Bernal, the soap aims to explore the double standards women face when it comes to infidelity.
(apolicarpio@inquirer.com.ph)