Bad Nerd Falling by D.R. Grady Page A

much.” He suspected the contents related to him, but he
didn’t know for certain. His prince had only stressed that he give
the USB drive to Aleksi.
    “ None of his known
passwords have worked.”
    “ So it’s a completely
different one then.”
    The prince sighed and
nodded.
    “ I don’t recall anything
other than his initial instructions.”
    “ How long ago did he give
it to you?”
    “ Thirteen or fourteen
months ago.”
    “ That was right before he
died.” Aleksi avoided his gaze by bouncing his attention all around
the hall.
    “ Yes. He told me during a
sane moment that it was vital.”
    “ He didn’t mention anything about the
password?”
    “ No.” In the middle of
shaking his head, he stopped. “Actually he did.”
    Aleksi’s eyebrows disappeared into his
hairline as his gaze finally snapped to him. “What did he
say?”
    “ That you would have to
work it out.” His mouth turned down. “He didn’t have many of those
clear spells near the end did he?”
    “ No.” Sorrow etched
Aleksi’s face.
    “ For what it’s worth, he
definitely loved and respected you.”
    “ Why do you say
that?”
    “ When I left him near the
end, he didn’t doubt that you would lead our country to greatness.
He had a lot of confidence in you.”
    “ Thank you, Vlad,” Aleksi
said, sounding stunned.
    He could relate. He hadn’t intended to
mention that, but after witnessing the new prince’s utter sorrow at
the passing of his father, sorrow he related to, the words were
yanked from him.
    He was relieved when Helena rejoined
them. By that time Aleksi regained his composure and set to teasing
Helena. It was reminiscent of their childhood years and told him
without a doubt that Helena and Aleksi’s relationship was solid and
quite platonic.
    This brought relief because he wanted
Helena for all time. Whether she wanted him was still in question,
but that kiss gave him hope.
    Sometimes that’s all a soldier had.
Hope. It was a fleeting, sometimes contrary emotion. Yet it was all
they had to cling to at times. If a warrior lost hope, he was lost.
Those who gave in to despair didn’t last.
    That was one of the most
basic rules of combat. Keep
going . Put one
foot in front of the other and look ahead . Do not take steps back, keep
moving toward your goal .
    Right now, his goal was keeping
everyone in Rurikstan safe, especially Helena. That’s all he had at
the moment. The rulebook discouraged taking up with the locals, yet
he couldn’t ignore this particular Rurikstani. She was everything
he wanted.
    He would keep Rurikstan safe. He would
also keep Helena in his life for as long as she allowed
it.
    ***
    Now she finally understood
what that word brooding meant. It had always escaped her in the past.
Vlad currently offered an impressive definition. Brooding meant
dark, menacing, and definitely deep in thought.
    He had yet to contribute to the lunch
conversation. Had she upset him? Said something she shouldn’t have?
Yet they hadn’t talked much. They’d been too busy exploring the
other’s mouth to worry about talking.
    It should worry her, but
it didn’t. Instead, she was fretting over the fact that… That what? She delved
deeper into her unease. It wasn’t comfortable, but the deeper she
sank the more she understood her own fear that Vlad hadn’t enjoyed
their kisses as much as she had.
    What if he hadn’t enjoyed
them at all?
    “ I can’t believe you left
me,” Tia exclaimed from the doorway.
    She traipsed in, laid a possessive,
happy kiss on Aleksi then slipped into the chair beside
him.
    Hans, the waiter who normally served
Aleksi, conjured up a plate of food for her. “Thank you, Hans.” Her
smile set the entire room alight with joy and happiness.
    Helena suppressed a sigh.
    “ You’re welcome, Your
Highness.” Hans obviously basked in her smile.
    The happiness dimmed as Tia’s smile
turned upside down. Her scowl was something to behold. “Hans, you
did not just call me Your