The Highlander's Reluctant Bride
Page 29
Ranald began breathing again as euphoria ripped through him, and he bounded up the stairs, taking them two at a time. In a trice, he arrived at the bedroom door and reached for the latch, amazed to find his hand trembling so he could not grip it. He stared in puzzlement, and the door swung open as if by magic.
Tavia drew up short, surprise on her face. “There ye are! Ye took yer own time getting here.” She indicated the bed where Riona lay propped by a mound of pillows at her back. A cradle beside the bed drew his eager eyes, and he stumbled forward, his gaze sliding from the bairn to Riona. Her weary smile tugged at his heart and he sank gingerly beside her, his weight pushing deep into the soft mattress.
Gently, he brushed back a lock of her auburn hair, cupping her cheek in his palm. “Are ye all right, Ree?”
Riona leaned into his caress. “Aye.” She nodded at the cradle.
A slow grin spread across Ranald’s face. “He’s a right bonnie lad, aye?”
Tavia placed a hand on the birchwood cradle. “And he is a healthy lad too,” she declared. Riona inhaled sharply and Ranald leaned to kiss her cheek, the loss of little Etta only days after her birth more than a year ago still a tangible grief between them.
“We could name him Niall, after yer da,” he offered.
Riona sighed. “I’d like that.”
The door creaked softly on its hinges and Gilda entered, one slow foot after the other. Ranald patted the mattress beside him. “Come in, lass. Come meet yer new brother.”
Gilda’s smile lit her face and she darted across the room. She bounced on her tummy against the mattress, not quite making it to the top of the bed. Ranald grabbed the back of her dress and hauled her into his lap.
“Look,” he said, pointing to the cradle.
Tavia picked up the bairn and settled him in Riona’s arms, adjusting the soft wool blanket around his face. The bairn scrunched his birth-reddened cheeks and yawned.
“Ist he daft, Da?” Gilda asked with some concern, pointing to Niall’s wrinkled, newborn features.
Ranald laughed aloud. “Nay, lass. He just needs a good feed to grow into his skin. He’ll be right as rain in no time.” Wrapping his arms around her, he tucked her head beneath his chin as she studied her new brother.
“Ye have, what, six summers now?” he teased her, knowing he undershot the mark.
“Seven,” Gilda replied automatically, fascinated by the bairn’s facial contortions. Then she pushed back against Ranald in good-natured protest. “Da!”
“That many, aye? Well, then ye are the perfect age to become his big sister. Ye will show him how to eat and how to walk.”
“Can I play with him?” Gilda cocked her head to one side, a doubtful expression to her face.
“Och, aye. When he is a bit bigger. And ye can show him how to collect sea shells.”
“Angel shells?”
“Of course.”
Gilda took a deep breath. “Will he become an angel like Etta?”
Ranald kissed the top of her head. “Nay, lass. I believe wee Niall is here to stay.”
“Good,” she replied with a determined nod of her head. “I like him. Even if he is a funny color.”
Young Niall, apparently unimpressed with the solemnity of the occasion, opened his mouth and howled with all the strength he could muster. Gilda clapped her hands over her ears.
Ranald grinned at her. “The lad is hungry. Shall we leave him to yer ma?”
Gilda couldn’t leave fast enough, and slid from his lap, fleeing the room. With tender care, Ranald slid onto the bed beside Riona, settling her against him as she nursed their son.
He kissed the top of her head and smiled, his heart near bursting with love and contentment at the home—and the life—they’d created together.
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