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“I’d love to meet him. But I don’t know when the right time for that will be. He’s your priority, and I’ve never done the whole meeting the parents thing before.”

“I’m happy to introduce you to him whenever you’re comfortable with that. There’s no rush, so don’t stress about it.”

“Okay. Maybe once he’s feeling up to visitors?”

Aster leaned in, her lips lingering against Eden’s when she kissed her slowly. “I can’t wait for him to meet you.”

“If he’s like you, I don’t think I have anything to worry about.”

“No, you really don’t need to worry. He’s great.” Aster pulled back, aware that her hands were itching to roam Eden’s thighs. “Do you think things will be okay with your family?”

Eden shrugged. “Right now, I don’t care. I have much more interesting people on my mind. Meaning you. You’re people.”

“Good to know.” Aster sat for a moment, enjoying the intimacy of Eden’s bedroom. When she arrived yesterday, she hadn’t for one second imagined she would wake up here. But she had, and it felt incredible. “Now, should we have breakfast before I head off?”

“Yes. I’ll cook dinner tonight. Just give me an idea of what time you’ll be back, and I’ll have it in the oven ready for us.”

“That sounds like the perfect night to me.”

“Me too.”

25

Eden moved around her office, clearing away the paperwork she’d left sitting around since before she took time off work. The thought of getting back into the swing of things had been hurting her head for the last couple of nights. It didn’t matter how truly wonderful life had been recently; she wanted to lock herself in her apartment while Aster waited in the bedroom for her.

The idea of a no-pressure relationship had grown on her overnight. Actually, that was a lie. In the last couple of weeks, Eden wanted to only be with Aster. She couldn’t care any less about pressure…because there was none.

Aster wasn’t one to call incessantly even though Eden missed having her around when she wasn’t at her place. She wasn’t the kind of partner who demanded to know Eden’s every move. Aster Bennett was the breath of fresh air Eden had been subconsciously praying for. Everything they did, it worked. Dinner together, walking around the city, waking up with one another…there wasn’t a single thing Eden could think of that irked her about Aster, but she hadn’t imagined she would anyway. From the moment they’d met, Eden felt at ease and in good company. That wasn’t going to change now that sex and a relationship had been thrown into the mix—it was quite the opposite, really.

A gentle knock on her door brought Eden from all thoughts of Aster. She had work to do; she needed to concentrate. “Come in.”

A flash of blonde hair greeted Eden. “Well, it’s good to finally see you.”

Eden grinned as Blair stepped into her office and closed the door. “Look at the tan on you. I’m not jealous.”

“Oh, you are. And you should be. Pride was…intense.”

Was Eden jealous? No, she couldn’t be. While Spain would have been lovely, Aster was where she wanted to be. And she would choose Aster time and time again. “It’s been intense here, too.”

“I thought you were taking time off work?”

“I did.”

“So, why was it intense? You’re supposed to relax when you’re not at the office.”

Eden chewed her lip, wringing her hands where she stood. Blair eyed her, but Eden didn’t know where to begin with explaining the whirlwind she’d faced lately.

“Edes?”

“Aster…is amazing.”

Blair splayed a hand across her chest, blowing out a deep breath. “Don’t do that to me. I thought something was wrong.”

Eden dragged her best friend to the couch, both landing with a thud as they sunk into the soft leather. “You’ve no idea just what I’ve been up to since you left for Spain.”

Blair quirked an eyebrow.

“I can’t pull myself away from her. She’s like a friggin’ drug.”