Page 129 of The Highlander's Auctioned Virgin
“Aye, as it should be.” Elinor nodded proudly.
“Ye ken, for a moment, when ye suggested that idea, I thought it would never work,” Ciaran admitted.
Elinor’s lips curled into a smile. “Sometimes, it takes a while for folks to trust what’s good.”
Ciaran inclined his head. “Aye. But they learn.”
Ewan let out a loud sigh and leaned his cheek against his mother’s arm as if to convey that he was suffering for the sake ofthis portrait. She smoothed his hair back, grateful for the simple sweetness of the moment.
Anna stepped back and gave the canvas a critical look. The brush hovered over the pale space where she’d only just begun to outline Ciaran’s shoulders.
Elinor studied her sister as she continued to scrutinize the painting.
“Ye ken,” she teased, turning to Ciaran, “the first time she sat ye down for a painting, ye glowered at her like she wanted to steal yer pot of gold.”
Ciaran let out a low sound that was nearly a laugh. “I didnae ken if I trusted her.”
Elinor felt a smile tug at the corners of her mouth. “Ye didnae trust anyone, back then.”
Anna smirked. “He still doesnae trust me, Elinor. He only stands here because ye told him he must.”
The twins wriggled harder at that, Ewan pressing his face against her shoulder in a way that made Anna sigh.
“Hold still,” she warned. “Or ye’ll end up with three arms in this painting.”
Isla giggled, her small fingers curling into Elinor’s braid.
Elinor stifled a groan. “If ye finish quickly, I promise they can go out before the rain starts to fall.”
Anna shot her a look. “Oh, I will be quick. But only if yer husband stops shifting his weight every time I look up.”
Ciaran grunted, but his hand never left Elinor’s shoulder.
Elinor dipped her head, feeling the soft brush of Isla’s hair against her cheek.
“Just a little longer,” she murmured to the children. “Then ye can run wild.”
Anna’s brush touched the canvas again, and for a while, no one spoke.
Elinor watched her sister continue to work, remaining focused for the next thirty minutes. At some point, she felt her baby kick three times.
Later, Anna set her brush down with a little sigh of satisfaction. “‘Tis done. Or at least near enough that nay one will notice what’s left.”
Ewan lifted his hand from Elinor’s shoulder as if he’d been waiting for that very moment. Isla had already begun to slide off her lap, her small, strapped feet reaching for the wooden floor.
“Do ye want to run outside before the rain?” Anna asked, her voice cheery.
“Anna!” Elinor warned, but her sister had already said the magic words.
The twins would not listen to her anymore. Isla’s face lit up like dawn, and Ewan scrambled down so fast that he nearly tipped the stool behind him.
“Great. Just great,” Elinor muttered, catching his arm and stopping him from falling flat on his face. “Well, what do we say to Aunt Anna?”
“Thank ye,” Isla spoke up, her curls bouncing around her face.
Ewan only nodded, already making his way towards the door.
Before they could get out of reach, Elinor kissed each small cheek and heard them giggle.
