Page 56 of Taken By the Ruthless Highlander

“Ryder, ye remember Eloise and Poppy?” she said.

The twin girls dipped into curtsies. If Ryder hadn’t known any better, he would have thought he had seen doubles and would need to lay off the ale for a bit.

“Ah, aye, I do. And how are ye doin’ this fine day?” he asked.

Only for Eloise to repeat his question in a high-pitched, annoying tone.

“I’m doin’ well,” he answered, wondering what the purpose of the game was. If the girl’s objective was merely to grate on his nerves, she was doing a fine job. “Is this how they always are?”

“Alright, girls. Go hide again, and I’ll come find ye,” Morgana ordered, before turning and batting her long lashes at him. “Nae unless ye want to play?”

“I’ll sit this one out,” Ryder grumbled.

Morgana smiled as she pointed to the blanket and basket of food she had prepared.

“There are a few meat pies left if ye want one. Eloise and Poppy helped make them,” she said, before she moved back to her position behind the tree.

Ryder sat on the soft blanket, watching as she tried to find her siblings. It wasn’t until the eldest had come around the bend, red-faced and whizzing, that he found any amusement in the ordeal. The whole game seemed to be more than just a waste of time.

“What in the world are ye playin’?” he asked, after watching them for a few more moments.

At first, the running around made him think they had been playing tag, but when one got touched, they froze until another came around to unfreeze them. At this rate, no one was going to win.

“This is one of the most exhaustin’ games I’ve ever witnessed. What is the purpose if ye cannae tag everyone?”

“Then ye try harder,” Ronnie answered as he tried to catch his breath. “But Morgana is just playin’ nice. She could catch us all if she wanted.”

“And I could do it now if I wanted to,” Morgana quipped.

Her voice was simply music to Ryder’s ears. How was it that merely being around her eased his worries? Was it the fact that his body needed hers? It had been far too long since he had last felt her skin against his. Still, her allure drove him mad.

What was it about her that pushed him to his breaking point? After all, he was outside instead of his study, trying to spend time with her and her family.

“Since ye’re our braither now because ye two are married, are we still supposed to call yeMe Laird? Or can we call yeUnclenow?” Eloise asked suddenly, the confusion on her face mocking him.

“In public, it will always beMe Laird, but in moments like this, I dinnae see why ye cannae just call me Ryder. I’ve had the name my whole life, and it’s sort of grown on me,” he said, his gaze flicking to Morgana.

She gathered the picnic basket and dropped it closer to him. He flashed her a smile as the twins scrambled over his lap, making it impossible for him to reach into the basket.

“Why do ye have a beard? Does it nae bother ye while ye eat?” Poppy chimed in, her curious eyes boring into him.

“I suppose it’s because I dinnae like shavin’,” Ryder answered. “It’s easier to keep it trimmed than to try and take away somethin’ that God clearly wants me to have. And what about ye? What’s wrong with yer nose? Has it always looked so stout?”

“My nose isnae stout,” Poppy scoffed. She reached for her nose, double-checking if he was telling the truth. “Yernose is hooked.”

“Aye, like a hawk’s,” Ryder answered, bobbing his head like a rooster.

Poppy burst into shrill giggles.

Morgana’s eyebrows rose with suspicion. “Ryder,” she asked, “what are ye talkin’ about now?”

“She asked about my beard.” Ryder shrugged as if he were knee-high once again.

“Alright, both of ye need to leave him be,” Morgana scolded, shooing the twins off his lap.

“Well, if I had kenned ye were out here, I would have come out a lot sooner.”

Ryder’s jaw tensed as he glanced over his shoulder to find Cohen walking up to Morgana. The smirk on the man’s face grated on his nerves.