Chris Brown: 'I worked hard to win back Rihanna'

Chris Brown won Rihanna back by showing her he was a changed man.

The R&B stars split in 2009 after a Grammy Awards eve fight, which landed Brown with an assault conviction, but they're now back together, and he insists he deserves a second chance at love.

He tells Los Angeles DJ Ryan Seacrest, "I just tried my best to be the best man I could be over the years and just show her how remorseful and sorry I was for the incident and that that time was probably the worst part of my life... Being that she has (forgiven me) and she's a wonderful person I'm eternally grateful and thankful."

Brown admits he couldn't be happier to have Rihanna back in his life: "It's still like we're kids. I try not to be too grown and be like, 'Let's have candlelight (sic) dinner every night'. I try to make sure everything is fun. It has to be fun and it has to be genuine."

And he tells USA Today, "We're taking it one day at a time. She's a wonderful girl. She's beautiful. She's on tour and our schedules don't allow us to be as close as we want to be. But everything is good."

The couple reconciled last year (12) and spent Christmas and New Year together. Brown recently flew to Hawaii to celebrate his girlfriend's birthday with her.