endearment

noun

1. The act or process of endearing, of causing (something or someone) to be loved or to be the object of affection.

   “Every step of that walk led Jeff deeper into an excursion of endearment. It was amazingly true that he trod beside her an acknowledged friend, a secret lover.”

2. The state or characteristic of being endeared.

   “He could not forget the fond and earnest look that had passed between her and some other man—the attitude of familiar confidence, if not of positive endearment.”

3. An expression of affection.

   “When they were alone he called him "my boy," an endearment he never gave another.”