Free The Succubus by Sarah Winn Page B

it. I’ll make all decisions concerning my daughter’s welfare from this time onward.”
    Isabel’s face twisted into a scowl. “You haven’t even seen her. How can you be so sure she’s yours?”
    â€œI can count. You didn’t have time to lure another man into your web.” Anger caused him to lean toward her as he continued. “But it really doesn’t matter if she’s mine or not since I can never claim her without branding her a bastard.”
    She bowed her head as if she were truly sorry for all the trouble she’d caused him, but he didn’t believe a bit of it. He stood and tapped his gloves against one hand. “Be ready to leave an hour after the cock crows.”
    As he turned toward the door, she said, “Don’t you want to see Chloe?”
    â€œTomorrow will be soon enough.”
    He let himself out and discovered a group of children examining his horse. “Don’t stand behind him. He’s a warhorse and might kick.”
    One of the twin boys who had answered the door spoke up. “I told ’em that.”
    â€œCan I pet him?” a chubby little girl asked.
    â€œNo,” Daniel warned. “He’s been trained to bite.”
    A girl on the verge of womanhood grabbed the younger girl’s hand and pulled her further from the horse. Daniel became aware of the family resemblance and asked. “Are you all Lady Miranda’s children?”
    The older girl did an awkward curtsy and said, “Yes, sir. I’m Phoebe and this is Nelly and the boys are John and Thomas.”
    Daniel gave them a curt nod and mounted his horse. Isabel had evidently gotten her fertility from her mother. Maybe he’d fill her belly a few more times before discarding her.
    * * * *
    The next morning the caravan bound for Tewsbarrow arrived at the cottage just when Daniel had said it would. What with packing and worrying about her future under Daniel’s “complete authority,” Isabel had slept little the night before. This morning her mother had roused Phoebe to help but left the other children sleeping. Still there was quite a bit of noise and confusion as servants loaded Isabel’s luggage onto a stout wooden cart while Daniel barked orders at everyone.
    After kissing her sister and mother goodbye, Isabel stood beside the horse equipped with a lady’s saddle. Her mother had tied a cloth sling around her shoulders and under her cloak so Chloe would be protected from the blustery November weather, but the babe had no intention of missing all the activity around her. She whined and fought against her bindings until Isabel flipped one side of her cloak back and adjusted the sling so Chloe’s capped head was in the open.
    Just then Daniel came to help Isabel mount. He placed his large hands at her waist and lifted her up with ease. As she rose in the air, Chloe’s face came abreast of Daniel’s and she screamed as if she’d been touched with a hot poker.
    Daniel started and almost dropped Isabel. When she was firmly seated on the saddle, he asked, “What’s wrong with her?”
    â€œShe’s frightened of strangers,” Isabel assured him as she wrapped her arms around the child and tried to soothe her.
    After watching her for a moment, he said, “I’d better take your reins. You have your hands full.”
    In order to lead her horse, Daniel had to ride ahead of Isabel, which pleased her because she had not decided how she should treat him. Of course he had a great deal of power over her and she certainly didn’t want to do anything that might anger him into sending her away from Chloe, but she didn’t feel obliged to play the guilty supplicant either.
    Chloe’s excited squirming interrupted Isabel’s thoughts. Evidently, the six-month-old found riding on horseback very much to her liking and didn’t want to miss a thing. She fought the sling that interfered with her