Cheryl’s joy: Liam Payne asks her to move back in

They’ve been lucky enough to maintain a close friendship following their split two years ago, as they continue to co-parent their three-year-old son, Bear Grey Payne.

Now, Cheryl and Liam Payne are set to take their blended family one step further, as insiders reveal they are in talks to move in together.

Liam, 26, has been in lockdown with his girlfriend of 11 months Maya Henry, 20, in his London flat, while Cheryl, 37, has been living in her Buckinghamshire mansion with toddler Bear. But sources close to the pair have revealed to Closer Magazine they’re considering living under the same roof in LA.

The news follows reports the former One Direction star has struggled to sell the stunning £12m mansion he previously lived in with Cheryl in the exclusive Calabasas region of the Californian mountains, after dropping the price for a third time.

He had previously told fans how they believed a bedroom in the enormous mansion was haunted, after lights mysteriously turned themselves on and off, and revealed that Cheryl insisted they slept in another wing of the house. But pals say Liam is now contemplating returning, and has invited Cheryl and Bear to stay for long periods of time.

A source says, “Liam is missing the LA weather and the laid back lifestyle. He hasn’t been able to sell his property and worries he’s haemorrhaging money with the upkeep, so thinks he should just head out there when travel restrictions are lifted. As an added bonus, he and Maya will be closer to her family, who are based in Texas."

The source continued, “He would never want to be apart from Bear for too long, so has floated the idea to Cheryl that she and Bear move back in occasionally to spend some time together. As Cheryl used to live there, he hopes she’d feel comfortable. She has a small network of people and knows parts of LA pretty well.

“Maya is very understanding – she knows Bear is the priority and has always supported Liam in how he co-parents with Cheryl. There is plenty of space at Liam’s LA home, so they wouldn’t be on top of each other. Seeing Liam with Bear makes Maya happy, as she knows he is happy.

“Cheryl and Liam have been discussing LA and he says he’d love Bear to experience the Californian way of life.

“Liam still does lots of recording over there, so it’s also about what’s best for Bear in terms of seeing both parents at the same time. Cheryl is keen that he should not have to spend long periods without seeing his dad so she’s considering it for the sake of their family.”

Check out Cheryl and Liam's full relationship timeline below:

Liam and Cheryl ended their two-year relationship a year after Bear was born – insisting in a joint statement that they still had 'so much love for each other as a family'.

They’ve since spent Christmases together, planned family holidays and have often sung each other’s praises following the split. On Mother’s Day earlier this year, Liam called his ex a 'special lady' who shows their son 'all the love in the world'.

Last week, Liam revealed he and Cheryl have discussed Bear’s future, saying he hopes his son grows up to 'do some good in the world' adding he is 'constantly inspired every day by Bear'.

And in April last year, Cheryl was all praise about their co-parenting style, saying, "Liam is a great dad... It’s your responsibility to keep things settled and happy, so you make the best of everything, and we have.”

You can read the full story in this week's Closer Magazine.

Listen to KISS and all of the KISS Network stations on our free Rayo app, by hitting the play button on the bottom of your screen and on your smart speaker (‘Play KISS FM’). Plus KISSTORY R&B is now available on DAB nationally and KISS Fresh, KISS Dance via DAB+ in London.

• cheryl
• Liam Payne