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The sound of a car approaching the house sprang Eden to her front window. She carefully took a discreet peek through the curtain, hoping and praying that it was Barron, finally coming back to her.

She hadn't heard a thing from him since she had stood there like an idiot, watching numbly as he jerkily climbed into his vehicle and drove off.

Eden blinked as bright headlights shined at the house, but her heart sank when she spied a different make and model. She watched as it reversed back to perform a u-turn before driving away.

Not Barron.

She slumped heavily back on her couch, cursing herself for the hundredth time for not doing more to stop Barron from leaving.

True, she had been taken aback by his line of questioning; but she hadn't been surprised.

For weeks he had been angling for an opening to discuss their burgeoning relationship. And for weeks she had used their uncontrollable passion to her advantage.

When he had called her out on her aversion tactics, letting her know that he knew exactly what she had been doing all along, Eden had been so ashamed of herself.

Whenever the topic of her evolving feelings for Barron popped up, she always ended up feeling like a deer in headlights. Her emotions just seized at the barest turn of conversation towards 'what happens next.'

But after seeing the hurt on Barron's face - knowing that he overheard her deny her relationship with him to her dad - Eden wished she had just addressed it sooner. Because the last thing she wanted to do was hurt him. And by the look of devastation on Barron's face, he had been all types of crushed. She couldn't blame him for leaving.

So after she had stopped crying and pulled herself together, Eden had texted him.

Are you okay?

Please come back so we can talk.

When he didn't respond she tried calling but his phone took her straight to voicemail. Barron never turned his phone off in all the months they had been dating. And he had always responded back to her texts within fifteen minutes of her sending him a message. Worry churned inside of her as she paced her living room floor while taking sporadic peeks out her front window.

It was now coming on three hours since she had tried to contact him. She had an awful feeling that he wasn't coming back tonight.

Worrying her bottom lip, Eden nervously fingered the necklace Barron had gifted her a few weeks ago. It was a simple yellow gold chain with a small diamond encrusted initial "E." He had it sent to her apartment from a local jeweller. It was exactly her taste - plain, understated and inexpensive. A token of his love for her, the card had read.

"Do you see a pathway to forgiveness?"

Eden closed her eyes in a feeble attempt to block out the look of despair on Barron's face after she had flayed him open with her response.

Why had she stalled? Why couldn't she tell Barron what was in her heart - that she was on that path and had been since the moment he turned up on her doorstep in New York.

Her heart had been heavy with anxiety when she left New Haven after a summer of new beginnings. She was treading uncharted waters with Barron, missing him deeply without realizing it - or refusing to admit it, rather.

The moment she had spotted him waiting for her outside her apartment building, a sense of peace washed over her. The missing piece of her had filled at the feel of his arms around her.

The loud blare of her phone ringing caused Eden to just about jump out of her skin. Although, after sitting in silence for the past few hours, it was a welcome relief. It had to be Barron.

She snatched up her phone and glanced at the screen.

Her heart sank again. Not Barron.

With a hard swallow, she put her phone to her ear.

"Hi, sweetheart. Sorry to bother you."

"No, Kelly, it's okay," Eden croaked.

"Are you sick?" Her concerned voice rose a fraction.

Eden closed her hand over the mouthpiece of her phone and tried giving a quiet cough and sniff.

"No."

"Oh." Kelly paused briefly. "I've been trying to get a hold of Barron, honey, but his phone's off. Is he there with you?"

Eden bit her lip in worry. His phone was still off. Guilt curdled in her gut that her carelessness had contributed to his out of character behavior.

"Eden?"

She blinked out of her trance. "N-no-o," her throat still felt scratchy. "He was here earlier for lunch but he left."

"Oh." Another pause. "Are you sure you're not coming down with something? You sound stuffy."

"No, no I'm fine. Allergies," she lied. But she couldn't fool Kelly.

"You're crying." Kelly swore. "What did my son do?"

"No, it wasn't him. I promise-"

"But he made you cry?"

"Not like that. Not like you think."

Kelly clucked her tongue. Her voice told her that she didn't believe her. But Eden couldn't let Barron take the blame. Not this time.

"It was me," she confessed, biting her lip to keep in a sob. She didn't want Kelly to be disappointed in her, but at the same time she couldn't lie to her.

"I find that hard to believe, honey," Kelly gently told her.

Eden sat up straight in determination, scrubbing a hand down her face. Barron had done her dirty in the past, yes, but he had also apologized over and over again.

But more than that, he also proved to her time and again that he saw her - and only her. He wasn't just all talk. He kept his promise to her that while they were apart, he would always make her feel wanted; loved. It had been his actions - calling, texting, video and voice chats, spontaneous visits, bouquets of flowers with loving notes, her beautiful necklace - all of that served to allow her to sink into their newfound relationship with comfort and ease.

She recognized that. But had stupidly done so too late.

Eden wasn't going to let him keep taking hits when they were undeserved.

"No. It was," she firmly stated. "He overheard me say something to my dad about the state of our relationship. I-I," she faltered and closed her eyes in shame. "I shouldn't have said it."

Kelly was quiet over the line. So quiet, in fact, that Eden was sure she had lost the connection.

"You shouldn't have said it because he overheard it or you shouldn't have said it because you didn't mean it?"

Eden mulled over the question, the answer dancing in front of her in bright neon which further fuelled her guilt.

"Can I ask you something?" She asked, ignoring Kelly's question.

"Sure."

"You remember when we first told you that we were dating again...we said that it wasn't serious?"

"Hmm," Kelly's disapproving tone came over the line, causing Eden to give a small smile in amusement. Kelly had made it perfectly clear that she thought this whole "casual dating business " was a load of malarkey.

"How do you see our relationship now?" She stroked her necklace, tracing the delicate "E" with nervous fingers.

"Oh! Um..." Kelly thought for a moment. "Well, I certainly hope you're past the casual stage," she started, not realizing the impact of her words, "Barron hasn't really divulged any details. He's just assured us that things were better than good. And that he loves you," she added.

Eden closed her eyes against that truth. He rarely said those words to her; and she knew it was because he didn't want her to feel any pressure from him.

"So, yeah, I see your relationship as going well. Amazing, really. I hope you don't mind but Susan and I have discussed how happy you both are."

Everyone was so sure about the status of their relationship. From the outside looking in, they appeared like a normal, loving couple.

But behind closed doors...they were so much more. They gravitated towards each other like iron to magnet. Their lovemaking was always an intense, sacred experience; as cheesy as it sounded. She was always left completely sated, not just in body, but in mind and spirit.

She had thought that they were dynamite as teenagers. But as adults? They touched corners of each other that had never been explored.

She would be lying if she didn't admit that she initially had been worried about how she compared to the other women Barron had taken to bed. But after their sex marathon in her apartment, where they fucked on every fuckable surface, thoughts of other women - Lissa, Tracey...faceless women that had come and gone - faded into oblivion.

"I know my son loves you," Kelly continued. "He's always loved you, even when you were apart."

"Yeah," Eden croaked. "He told you that?" She had trouble believing that Barron confided in his Mom over their breakup in the subsequent years.

"Well..." Kelly's hesitant voice came over the phone.

"What?" Eden slowly pressed her.

Kelly sighed. "He'll kill me for telling you this, but a few years ago I borrowed his laptop so I could show him something. I forget what it was now," she mused.

"Oh, god, he was watching porn."

Kelly let out a bark of laughter at that answer. "No, sweetheart!" She giggled. "But he probably wished he was after what I saw."

Eden frowned. She wasn't sure that she wanted to know but curiosity got the better of her.

"What did you find?"

"You."

Eden's eyes widened in surprise as she swiftly dropped the pendant from between her fingers. "Huh? What do you mean?"

"His history was filled with runway shows and interviews you'd done. His search bar had your name on there a few times...it was clear he spent a lot of time watching you on repeat," she finished, sounding awkward.

Eden raised her brow in surprise at that statement. She had done a lot of runway shows over her career. The notable shows almost always appeared on YouTube and she knew of a few high profile fashion channels that featured her runway looks.

There was only one channel that she had done a sit down interview for, which was part of their 'day in the life of a model' series. She had been approached to feature after she had been named 'The New Face' of the season. Of course she had jumped at the opportunity to be featured by such a reputable fashion label.

The exposure helped build her brand and was the catalyst to some wonderful things happening to her, career wise. That interview had happened quite early on; within two years of her moving to New York.

Far from feeling uncomfortable over Kelly's revelations to her, Eden instead felt a pleasurable warmth spread over her body. Like stepping out from the shade and into the warm, inviting sun.

"Eden?" Kelly pressed, nervously.

Eden licked her dry lips as she sought a response. "Wow," she whispered, "that's so -"

"Creepy?"

Sweet.

"Err..."

Kelly gave a sound over the phone like she was smiling. "Not creepy," she concluded in satisfaction.

For the first time since Barron had confronted her and stormed out, Eden gave a genuine smile. Hope in taking that next step bloomed in the horizon. "Definitely not creepy," she confirmed.

Kelly sighed. "Honey, whatever happened between you two tonight, please know that Barron loves you. You're his dream girl, his one regret in life. He'll forgive you for anything as long as you're with him."

A weight lifted off her shoulders. Eden knew what she needed to do. No, she didn't think that Barron should forgive her for anything just because he fucked up their relationship first. They had come too far and grown up a lot - both separately and together - to fall into a tit for tat relationship.

However, the tidbits that were fed to her by Kelly helped absolve any lingering fears she had in taking that next step. Suddenly, Eden was eager to get off the phone.

"Kelly, I need to go."

"Yeah you do," Kelly's smug voice soothed.

"I'll let Barron know you're looking for him."

"Don't bother, sweetie. If tonight goes how I know it will, his dear old Mom will be the last thing on his mind." And with that, she rang off.

Eden's finger hovered over Barron's number but instead of dialing it, she scrolled back on her call history. As much as she wanted to hear Barron's voice and snuggle into the warmth of his embrace, there was something more pressing she needed to do first.

"Honey?" Her dad's puzzled voice came over the line. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing, Dad, I'm fine. But there's something I need to tell you."

Thirty minutes after she called her dad, who unfortunately wanted to have an in-depth discussion about why she chose to get back together with 'that douchebag', Eden finally pulled up to Barron's complex.

She made sure to call The Good Home first to ensure that he hadn't locked himself away in his office. When Barron hadn't answered her calls or texts, that was where she first thought he had gone to, since he often kept his phone on silent when he was working. She had been relieved when the manager on duty confirmed that he hadn't holed himself in his dingy office. Hard to make a romantic gesture with the muted sounds of patrons and staff floating in the background.

As she approached his front door, Eden shook out the jitters from her hands. She was nervous. So fucking nervous. She couldn't get his sad and defeated face out of her mind. She just hoped he was receptive to her and that he was ready to talk.

Just as she reached up to knock on his front door, it flew open. Eden startled, causing her to step back in defense.

"Fuck!" Barron jumped when he caught her mid knock. His eyes adjusted to her standing there and widened in surprise. "Eden, baby, I was just-"

Eden took a deep breath. Here it goes.

"You're an amazing son to your parents, you help your Mom out anytime she needs you, you still hang out with Bailey, you volunteer your time coaching soccer and helping the community, you're a mentor to young men, you started a business from scratch and work tirelessly to make it a success."

Eden paused to take another shaky breath. She could see Barron standing there; frozen. His brow was puzzled and his mouth slightly agape in shock. She powered on before she lost her nerve.

"You've owned up to your mistakes, you humbled yourself to my Mom, Sofia and Ryan even if they weren't receptive - especially Sofia," she added with a wry smile.

Barron's eyes softened as he soaked in her words.

"You kept your promise to me that you would always make me feel wanted and loved and you've gone beyond to make me feel secure while we were apart."

She twisted her hands nervously as she met his gaze. Barron's mouth was tightened as if he was attempting to keep his emotions at bay. God, she felt like that poor man from Love, Actually who stood in front of his best friend's wife holding up those stupid placards, declaring his undying love for her. She just hoped that their ending was better than his. Nevertheless, she had to get this out.

"Do you remember when I agreed to try again? I told you that you might not like the person I am today. I was worried that I wouldn't live up to the memory you carried of me in your head. Do you remember what you did? You listed all the reasons why you still love me. So...that's what I'm doing," she simply stated, allowing Barron to come to terms with what she was saying to him.

With a clenched jaw, Barron took a step forward to grasp her by her shoulders. "Baby, I like to think I'm a smart man, but I'm gonna need you to spell it out for me."

Eden swallowed thickly as she took in the yearning expression of hope on his face.

"I love you, Barron. And I'm sor-"

Before she could finish her sentence, Barron hauled her up, framing her face in his large hands before covering her mouth with his own.

At first startled by his sudden action, Eden gave a strangled squeak. It wasn't until she felt the gentle stroke of his tongue licking at the seam of her lips that her brain caught up to what was happening and she eagerly returned his kiss.

His mouth left hers to rain loving pecks down the side of her face. "I'm sorry," he murmured.

"No, I'm sorry," Eden breathed as she bathed in his caress.

"No." Barron pulled back and brushed the hair out of her eyes. He moved back, pulling her inside and closing his front door before circling her waist with his arms.

"No, baby, I'm sorry. I was actually just about to come back over," he told her. It was then Eden noticed his damp hair, clean shaven jaw and a subtle scent of woodsy aftershave.

"I'm sorry for storming out like that. I should've stayed and tried to talk it out. I promised you that I would be patient and I was kicking myself thinking I messed up my chance."

Eden stroked his chest as she shook her head in disagreement. "No, you had every right to be upset. I never should have let you leave. I did try and call you to come back but your phone was off."

Barron groaned. "My Mom was trying to call me. I didn't want to talk to anyone so I powered off my phone and went straight to the gym." He gave her a remorseful look. "I just needed to work off the energy. By the time I took out my...emotions...I realized what an idiot I was being. I had no idea that I was working out for that long so I came home to have a quick shower. I was always going to come back to you."

"Can we sit?" Eden clasped his hand in hers before guiding him to his couch. She turned to him in earnest, her hand still firmly wrapped in his. "You were right that I was avoiding the subject of our relationship. The truth is, everything between us was perfect. Almost too perfect."

Barron nodded, understanding. "You were waiting for the other shoe to drop."

"Kinda. Our friends were getting along, we reconnected with both sets of parents, our sex life is amazing, we talked every night...I've never felt closer to you. Even when we were kids."

Barron squeezed her hand in his. "Baby, I feel the same way."

"So, I was scared that if we took that final step, if I verbalized to you that, yes, I wanted us to become a couple...it would somehow change our dynamics. That our picture perfect arrangement will fall apart."

"Eden, baby, I would never let that happen."

"But that's the thing, Barron," she shook her head. "Relationships aren't perfect. They have their ups and downs. We're gonna argue. I'm gonna get on your nerves sometimes and vice versa. Our parents are gonna drive us crazy, the long distance might start grating on us. But you know what? That's okay. Because I have faith in us. But more importantly, I have faith in you."

Barron closed his eyes and took a deep breath as the importance behind her words penetrated. When he opened them, she almost melted at the look of relief and love shimmering through.

"Baby...you have no idea..." he brought his head forward to rest his forehead against hers. "Thank you," he simply said. "I promise I will take real good care of your heart this time. You'll never have to worry or doubt my love and devotion to you. I'm your man, only yours." He leaned back and fixed her with a determined stare. "And you're my woman. Say the words, baby. I need to hear you say you're mine."

Eden smiled as she ran a finger down the side of his face. "I'm yours."