Two Years Later

“Goodness, I think this might be my worst model yet.” Bridget feigned disappointment and frustration as she shook her head at the two-year-old child running around the room, completely oblivious to what Bridget was trying to do. She lowered her paintbrush and gave Evan a look of exasperation, which only made him laugh.

“I don’t know what you expected, in all honesty,” he said to her. “Sarah is only two and you know that she is only growing more and more rambunctious with age. Did you truly think she would sit still long enough for you to paint a portrait of her?”

“No, I would not be so foolish,” Bridget defended herself. “Which is why I asked you to come along with us. So that you could hold her still.”

“Ah, how you wound me. And here I thought you wished to have my company.”

“That is only a small part of it, yes.” When she caught him shaking his head in disappointment, she waved a dismissive hand. “Oh, there is no need to be hurt by such a thing. You know I love you and cherish your company at all times. Now, could you put her on your knee so that I may get an understanding of what pose I should paint her in?”

Evan chuckled at that, even as he rolled his eyes. Bridget wasn’t surprised he found this amusing but she truly had high hopes that she would be able to finally capture her beautiful daughter in watercolours.

Now that she was attempting it though, Bridget was beginning to realize what foolish hope she had had harboured. She watched patiently as Evan tried chasing Sarah around.

The small toddler was bolstered on by the chase and began running even faster, trying to get away from her father as if her life depended on it. Bridget felt a smile tug at her lips as she watched the scene.

Evan soon caught the squirming child. Sarah’s excited laughter filled the room and Bridget smiled in full.

“Hold her still for just a second,” Bridget said eagerly, though she hadn’t a clue how she would be able to capture anything if Sarah kept squirming in Evan’s arms the way she was doing right now. Bridget knew that she was not an art master like Evan. She would not be able to pull of such a feat.

Sarah’s excited squeals soon turned into screams, forcing Evan to put her back down. As soon as her tiny feet touched the ground, she began running around again, grabbing anything she could find with her little hands.

“Perhaps we should move this to the gardens,” Evan suggested, coming to Bridget’s side. “She will have much more space to run around in there.”

“Yes, perhaps.” Bridget stared at her painting in slight dismay. “I had such high hopes for this.”

“You can do it, my love. You only need the dedication it takes for your muse to do what you want them to.”

“Is that what you did with me?” she asked. “Did you remain patient until I did as you wished?”

“I did not have to. I painted you from memory, if you recalled. And as a master at the craft, I would suggest that you do not try to do the same.”

“Oh?” Bridget turned to face him, raising a challenging brow. Evan’s eyes shimmered with humour. “It sounds as if you’re saying I am not as good as you, Evan.”

“That is exactly what I am saying. Was I unclear the first time?”

She laughed, shaking her head at him. “Well, I concede to that fact. You certainly are much better at this than I am. Why, I would not be surprised if you could paint her looking as adorable as she is right now without caring about the fact that she’s going to get up two seconds later.”

They both looked over at Sarah who was now sitting in the corner of the room, interested in the edge of a rug. Her brown curls brushed the back of her neck when she moved, and she brushed at it in irritation. The sight made Bridget laugh.

Though she was only two, she’d developed such a vibrant personality that every day was an interesting one because of her. She had the ability to charm just about anyone, which included both Bridget’s and Evan’s fathers.

Once, they had both happened to visit at the same time and the only reason they had remained in the room with each other, acting civilly, was because Sarah was there with them.

She was a breath of fresh air and Bridget loved her dearly. She lifted her gaze to Evan, who was still watching their daughter, and felt excitement mount in her as she thought of what she planned on telling him.

“She is tired,” Evan pointed out.

Bridget nodded. “She is, and is forcing herself to keep awake. I shall ring the nursemaid.”

As soon as they said those words, Sarah’s eyes drifted and she nearly toppled over before she caught herself. She remembered a second later that she had been playing and she resumed her rampage throughout the room. Just as she rushed by the both of them, Evan scooped her into his arms and cradled her like she was still a baby.

“It’ s time to put you down for a nap,” he announced.

The word ‘nap’ sent Sarah into a tirade, and she tried, but failed, to get out of her father’s arms. When the nursemaid came, she calmed down and allowed the older woman to lead her out of the room.

Once they were gone, Bridget let out a sigh. “I love that child dearly but she does have a way of tiring me out. Since coming into this room, I have taken this seat and haven’t stood up since, yet she has exhausted me.”

“That is what I’m here for,” Evan told her tenderly and placed a gentle kiss on her cheek. Bridget’s heart swelled with love at the show of affection. She took his hand and pulled herself to a stand.

“Then there is something I must tell you,” she said with a broad grin.

“What’s that?”

She waited a moment, if only to be a little dramatic, and then she did the same thing she’d done nearly three years ago. She took his hand and put it against her stomach, waiting for him to catch on.

Realization dawned in Evan’s eyes a second or two later. “Again?” he breathed.

Bridget nodded. “Again.”

“God, how is this possible?”

The question caught her off guard. “How is what possible?”

“How can you continue to make me happier and happier with each passing day?” He pulled her close to him, kissing her on the forehead, then on the cheeks, then finally on the lips. “We’re going to have another child?” Evan asked, just to make sure.

She nodded; her arms wrapped around him as well. “We’re going to have another child,” she confirmed. “I can only hope this time it is much easier to give birth to him.”

“Him?”

“Yes, I have the strongest feeling that our next child will be a boy. What do you think?”

“I think I do not know, and I do not care. As long as they are happy, I am.”

“And what of the Grey family legacy?” she asked. “Don’t you want an heir?”

“I would be more content with you having a safe and easy time giving birth. Anything else is secondary.”

She grinned, resting her ear against his heart. “Well, we need not worry about that for now. For now, let us learn to keep up with the child we do have before another comes along and they overwhelm us.”

“That is quite a possibility, isn’t it?” he said with a chuckle.

She didn’t say anything in response, just letting him hold her. The moment was peaceful, and Bridget knew that there would be more peaceful moments like this ahead of them, with a family that she could call her own.

She couldn’t wait to tell her children the story of how this handsome man had come to change her mind on the thought of love and marriage. Their love was borne of a miracle, and she planned to hold on to it forever.

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