18 Months Later

"Thank you so much, Richard," Eden smiled at her driver as he slammed his trunk closed.

"No problem, Miss Jamison. You have a good day." He held out his hand for a shake before waving her off.

Eden smiled to herself as she wheeled her carry on behind her, happy to finally be home.

She took her phone out from her back pocket and frowned at the empty screen. She texted Barron while she was on the road that she was ten minutes away, like he asked her to, but he was yet to respond. It didn't matter anymore since she was home now but still. Rude.

She was tired when she hopped on her flight but now that she was home, she felt energized. Eden had been in Florida with her Mom checking out the retirement village her grandparents recently moved into. They were going to pick a nice but basic retirement community until she stepped in and paid the difference to get them into a more exclusive facility. Her grandparents helped raise her so if they weren't getting waited on hand and foot then it wasn't good enough for Eden.

The community was impressive with a gym, tennis court, pool, five star meals, and a first class medical team. She wouldn't mind living there herself with the amount of services on offer.

But for now, Eden was more than content living with Barron in their little love nest - formerly his apartment.

They did talk about eventually selling her apartment in New York and finding a house somewhere nearby, but rural. Eden always pictured living in a cute farmhouse where she could tend to a proper garden, maybe have a few chickens for eggs. The plan was still a few years off but that didn't stop Eden from continuously looking at real estate adverts. Barron always lightly chastised her when he would catch her pouring over magazines and websites.

"You're only getting your hopes up, baby."

But she didn't care. Who knew that she would be here - excitably looking through houses to buy with Barron?

"Honey, I'm hooome," Eden sang out as she unlocked the front door, snickering to herself at her joke.

Even though she'd only been gone a week, she missed Barron something fierce. And she knew he missed her, too, by the amount of times he texted. It wasn't unusual for them to be apart given her line of work and how busy The Good Home could be, but the craving they had for each other never waned.

Eden sighed happily as she snapped her handle back down and breathed in the familiar scent of home while her eyes scanned the small living space with satisfaction.

There were a few changes made when she moved in. A new couch was purchased as well as cute matching cushions. They also upgraded to a bigger bookshelf since she had trouble letting go of her complete book collection.

She made sure they took plenty of new pictures to replace the old photos that were destroyed and Eden took the time to lovingly decorate their home with them.

There was the two of them at their twenty-fifth and twenty-sixth birthday dinners, selfies in New York and London, and various photos of them and their families at Thanksgiving and Christmas.

But the one photo that took pride of place in their home was a heavy, faded, macaroni decorated photo frame. The photo inside showed two beaming, happily in love teenagers. So full of hope and optimism, not realizing that their whole worlds would soon explode. The photo served as a reminder on how far they've come.

After their vacation in London last year, she booked them in for counselling with her therapist. Even though Eden felt like she didn't need therapy with Barron, she did find the sessions helpful in navigating a relationship after infidelity; no matter how much time has passed since the event.

They walked away a stronger couple after some helpful advice and exercises from Dr. O'Connor.

Things weren't always perfect, though. Like any other couple they had their fair share of arguments. Some were minor grumbles, others were more significant like the big blow up they had last summer.

Since Barron usually had a busy season over summer at The Good Home, Eden accepted an invite to vacation with her industry friends at Lake Como in Italy.

At the time, she didn't think anything of it but Barron had been upset that she hadn't given him a heads up about her plans.

She accused him of being controlling, he argued back that she was acting without regard to their relationship. After she stormed off in a huff she took a drive and gave herself a moment to breathe.

When she calmed down and thought with a clear head she recalled the coping tools Dr. O'Connor gave them when major disagreements occurred.

Once she returned, Barron was also contrite and apologetic. They sat down and hashed out their issues one by one, ticking off how to handle each other's concerns, as both their feelings were valid.

She acknowledged that she should have talked with Barron first about her plans. She was so used to her jet setting lifestyle and figured it was okay to take off, knowing that Barron might be tied up with work during that time.

Barron confessed that he had no issue with her going away without him - like she assumed he did - but that his main problem was knowing she was accustomed to a certain lifestyle that he stupidly thought he couldn't match. And also the thought of Eden being surrounded by people of a certain ilk.

"It makes me insecure that you might be surrounded by these pretty boys who drool over you. But because of our... past I feel like an ass being jealous over them."

They stayed up for hours talking and alleviating each other's concerns. The most important foundation of their relationship was trust and honesty, attributes they lost sight of during their argument.

They reaffirmed their devotion to one another and in the end were both relieved the argument occurred. It cemented their relationship, tightening their bond and trust with each other.

They never had another blow up quite like that again and Eden felt confident that if they ever did, they had the maturity and foresight to iron out any disagreements that arose.

As Eden looked around their living room, a strange feeling came over her. Frowning in concentration, she tipped her ear to listen for Barron. It was quiet in their home. A little too quiet.

Abandoning her bag, Eden padded down the hall before pausing at the soft strings of...classical music? Since when did Barron listen to Morricone? Their bedroom door was ajar and a floral scent tickled her nose.

Heart in her throat, Eden pushed the bedroom door open and gasped at the sight in front of her. She fell back a step, hand on her chest and eyes shimmering with constrained emotion.

"Baby...," Barron started as he stared up at her from his kneeling position on the floor.

Candles littered their room and the aroma of vanilla floated through the small space. Rose petals were scattered on the floor with a few on their neatly made bed.

"What the fuck?" She sniffed as the soft tones of Gabriel's Oboe played from his phone.

Barron gave her a watery smile. She could tell that he had neatly gelled and combed his hair but ruined the final result by running his fingers through the strands multiple times - she suspected out of nervousness. It gave him that sexy "I just fucked my woman hard for hours" look she adored.

His polo shirt looked freshly washed and he was wearing his good jeans. He looked deliciously sexy and if she wasn't so busy wiping tears from her eyes, she would be currently working the buttons on his pants loose.

"I had this whole speech planned but seeing you, I couldn't tell you my full name right now."

Eden gave a choked laugh as she clenched her shaking hands.

"Since I was seventeen I'd prayed and hoped that I would get a second chance with you. Never in a million years could I have imagined that I would be here right now - living with you, sleeping next to you, having the right to call you mine."

He paused and rolled his lips in, attempting to push his emotions down. He cleared his throat before continuing. "It's because of you - your kindness, generosity, and big heart that allowed me to have another shot at being your man. I promise you, baby, if you say yes I will love, honor, worship and adore you for the rest of my life."

She watched through blurry eyes as he reached into his pocket and produced a small robin-egg blue colored box. He lifted the lid as he gazed up at her with a look that was charged in love and hope.

He took a shaky breath. "Eden Jamison, you've been the love of my life since we were fourteen. Will you do me the honor of being my wife?"

The words barely left Barron's mouth before she lunged at him in glee.

"Yes, yes, yes!!!" She screeched as she peppered kisses all over his face.

Barron, who was not prepared for her animated launch, fell back in a tangle of limbs, his deep voice laughing at her antics.

He turned his head and met one of her wet pecks with his mouth. Eden moaned as she balanced her hands on either side of his head, sinking into the kiss. Her hair fell into a curtain around their heads, creating a cocoon of intimacy.

His hands gripped her ass, kneading the firm globes through her denim shorts as she ground her increasingly damp center against his lower body.

Barron's teeth nipped her bottom lip before sucking the pouty flesh. His tongue tangled with hers as he encouraged her rocking movements by stroking the delicate skin between her upper thigh and buttocks.

Eden tore her mouth away from his before gripping the hem of her t-shirt and pulling it over her head. She grinned saucily down at a panting, stunned Barron before reaching behind her to free her aching breasts from the confines of her lace bra.

She giggled as she threw it at his head before bending down to resume their kiss.

"Wait," Barron stopped her with a slide of a hand on her sensitive tits.

"That's not making me wanna stop anytime soon," she moaned as she arched her back into his touch.

"Hold on, minx." He balanced on an elbow as he felt the floor around them. He made a noise of satisfaction when he produced the small, blue box. "I need you to put this on first before I fuck you."

Excited tingles licked down her spine as he opened the box. Truthfully, between the sweetness of Barron's words during his proposal and her need to get him naked, she had forgotten about the ring.

She squealed as he reverently slipped the halo pear-shaped diamond onto her ring finger. The shoulders of the band were lined with small diamonds and she oooh'd as she wiggled her fingers in the air, admiring the sparkly shine from all angles.

"How does it look?" She teasingly caressed her décolleté before stroking down to wriggle her hands against her hard nipples.

"Beautiful," Barron's eyes, which were golden in lustful appreciation, devoured her hungrily.

"C'mere." He grabbed her around the neck and pulled her down towards him. But just before his mouth touched hers, she felt him whisper against her flesh.

"Thank you," he ardently murmured before covering her seeking lips with his own.