Jennifer Lopez Feels 'So Lucky' For Second Chance With Ben Affleck

Jennifer Lopez is opening up about her relationship with boyfriend Ben Affleck, admitting how lucky she feels to get a second shot with her ex-fiancé.

Source: RB/Bauer-Griffin / Getty

In a new cover story for PEOPLE, J.Lo gushed about reuniting with Affleck so many years after their first relationship ended.

“I feel so lucky and happy and proud to be with him,” she told the magazine. “It’s a beautiful love story that we got a second chance.”

Lopez went on to admit that going through so many obstacles with the media during their first relationship (and breakup) has made them both a lot more prepared for how to handle life in the public eye this time around.

“We both were like, ‘Wow, we’re so happy and we don’t want any of that to come into play again.’ We’re older now, we’re smarter, we have more experience,” she explained. “We’re at different places in our lives, we have kids now, and we have to be very conscious of those things. We’re so protective because it is such a beautiful time for all of us.”

While reigniting this old romance may sound familiar, to a lot of people, the 52-year-old said their relationship this time around is an entirely different chapter.

“It’s beautiful the way it feels very different than it was years ago. … There’s more of an appreciation and a celebration for it, which is nice,” she told PEOPLE. “When you find somebody and you really, really love them and you get a second chance at that? That is a really rare, precious, beautiful thing, and we don’t take it for granted.”

Lopez went on to acknowledge that blending families — she shares 13-year-old twins with ex-husband Marc Anthony and Affleck shares three children with ex-wife Jennifer Garner — can be tough, but says Bennifer’s “love” made the process simple.

“I honestly believe that love rules all. Love always conquers everything — relationships, kids, work, work relationships,” Jennifer shared. “It’s all about how loving, open and accepting you can be. Not having an ego about things and just embracing all the good, always looking at the positive.”

The actress even praised her boyfriend for his sobriety and becoming the man that he was hoping to be for so long.

“To see the person, the human being, the man that he is today, the father that he is today, the partner that he is — he is so everything I always knew he was and wanted to be,” she said.