Forged in Stone by Alyssa Rose Ivy

evil.”
    “How do you know that is what I was doing? Maybe I had a nefarious plan you foiled by waking up.”
    She put a hand on my arm. “I don’t know. I already admitted to getting the wool pulled over my eyes for six months, but—”
    “Six months? They did that to you for six months before you found out?”
    “Yeah. Like I said, I was an idiot.”
    “Have you spoken to your sister since?”
    “Once. I’ve avoided her which probably explains why I have no life. I refuse to hang out with any of our shared friends because they all knew. They all knew and kept the truth from me.”
    “Except for that other friend? The one who introduced you to the dashing Brad?”
    “Yeah, Grace. She’s not friends with my sister.”
    “You deserve a better man.”
    “I know.” She sighed.
    “I want you to see Bellgard.”
    “I thought I wasn’t supposed to make my decision tonight?” She threw my words back at me.
    “It is morning now.” I didn’t have a watch on, but I knew it had to be at least after midnight.
    “The sun isn’t up.”
    “You don’t need the sun to call it morning.”
    “We probably should get some sleep.”
    “I need to find a bassinet in all this mess.”
    “It’s probably in that back corner over there.” She pointed across the room.
    “Why do you think so?”
    “Because there’s a box labeled nursery next to it.”
    “But a nursery is a garden.”
    “It’s also a baby’s room.” She stood up. “How do you not know that?”
    I stood and carefully made my way around boxes and furniture over to the corner where she had pointed. Ainsley followed.
    She pointed triumphantly at a small cradle. “See.”
    “Yes, this must be it.” I examined the small wooden crib. One leg was broken.
    “I bet there’s other stuff she’d want from here.” Ainsley opened up the box marked nursery. “What is she having?”
    “A baby?”
    Ainsley sighed. “Is she having a boy or girl?”
    “How would I know?”
    “You’re useless.” She pulled out a frilly dress. “There’s tons of baby clothes in here. Boy and girl.”
    “Oh, I will have to ask her if she wants that.”
    “And some toys.” She held up a rattle.
    “I will fix the cradle while you are at work tomorrow.”
    “You mean I’m not getting a ride?”
    “I don’t mind dropping you off.”
    “As much as I love your car, I’ll drive myself.”
    “Or you could borrow my car.”
    “No way.”
    “What?”
    “You’d lend me, a girl you barely know, your priceless car?”
    “If I cannot trust you with my car, then I certainly cannot trust you enough to take you to Bellgard.”
    “It’s that secretive of a place?” She carefully closed up the box.
    “It is a fortressed city.”
    “Fortressed? Come on.”
    “You will see for yourself.”
    “If I decide to come. Remember, I was leaning toward saying no.”
    “You want to come.”
    “You can’t possibly know that.”
    “You came up here. You searched through baby clothes. You told me about your past. You want to come.”
    “I still don’t know enough about you.”
    “You know I am the son of evil. I live in a fortressed city far from here, and I enjoy a good Pinot and fast cars as much as you do. Is there anything else you need to know?”
    She seemed pensive for a moment. “Do you have a girlfriend?”
    “A girlfriend? No.”
    “Then a wife, or anything else?”
    “None of the above. And if it puts you at ease, it has been longer than I care to admit since I have been with a woman.”
    “It doesn’t put me at ease. It means you’re desperate.”
    “Desperate? If I were desperate I would have slept with the girl hanging all over me at that dive bar the other night.”
    “You hang out at dive bars?”
    “It is the atmosphere that attracts me. I like to blend in. I go there because no one knows me, and no one cares.”
    “Sounds kind of sad.” She played with the hem of her pajama shirt.
    “It is no sadder than you turning into a recluse because of what