Bad Nerd Falling Read Online Free PDF Page B

in the current storage closet?
It was a lot smaller and cramped, and subsequently crowded with
reagents and supplies.
    Why did they use that area rather than
the much larger one? He scanned both areas again. Ah, that was why.
The smaller one was located closer to the center of the room, while
the larger was on the outskirts of the lab. It would take more
effort to use the larger. Still, the table they all used would work
better in the center of the lab.
    Now all he had to do was convince the
four of them that they needed to use the larger closet, and somehow
show, without showing, the secret escape route. His mother,
girlfriend, and the soon-to-be princess all worked in this
space.
    It was ripe with potential to
unscrupulous men who needed money. How much would Aleksi pay to get
Tia back?
    His heart dropped. A lot . How much would he
pay to get his mother or Helena back? A
lot .
    Operation Closet Changing suddenly
became his top priority.
    ***
    Helena’s heart stuttered
when Vlad entered the lab again. Twice in one day. Once this morning
and now again this afternoon. Her palms turned sweaty as she swung
around to stare at him head on.
    “ Can we help you?” Her
voice was a little too eager she decided.
    “ Vlad, love, what are you
doing here again?” His mother’s voice was every bit as
eager.
    “ Hello, Mother,
Helena.”
    Vlad didn’t seem to mind in the least
that they were eager. In fact, his eyes crinkled at the corners
just the way she liked. His lips kicked up and she discovered that
was because she was grinning like an idiot.
    He glanced around the room. “Where are
Jorge and Tia?”
    Oh, too
bad . He hadn’t come to ask her on a
date.
    “ They’re out taking water
samples.” Maria had the presence of mind to answer,
thankfully.
    She swallowed, since her mouth seemed
to have filled with a lot of saliva. Once she accomplished this she
smiled at him again.
    “ I see.” Vlad sent her a
slightly searching look.
    To cover herself, Helena hurried to
the supply closet. She needed a moment to gain control of herself.
This was ridiculous. She was nearly thirty years old. There was no
reason to be an idiot about all of this. She was an
adult.
    Maybe she should start acting like
one.
    Anyway, she did need more pipets so
she opened the closet and paced to where they were stored on the
top shelf. Since she couldn’t brag about her height, Helena grabbed
the step stool and crawled on top. From the top step she could just
reach the shelf. Snagging the box she saw it was empty.
    “ Hey, who used all the 1
ml pipets?” She stared dubiously inside the box but it was still
empty.
    “ Is that bad?” Vlad asked
from below her.
    With a shriek she jumped,
because she didn’t know he had followed her into the closet.
Oh, a closet, and Vlad. All she had to do was close the door and she
could jump him. Except that his mother hovered in the
doorway.
    “ That box was full
yesterday. I only took one package from it.”
    She upended the box. “It’s not full
now.”
    “ And I just got that box
from the big closet yesterday. We use a lot of that size so I’m not
surprised.”
    “ We do use a lot of these.
And we already moved that table yesterday.” She glared at the door
across the way.
    “ I’ll help,” Vlad offered
and she turned a beguiling smile on him.
    “ Thank you.”
    Maria offered her own effusive
thanks.
    “ Let’s move that table.”
Then without any warning whatsoever, Vlad circled her waist and
easily lifted her off the stool. No easy feat because she was
curvy. She was too surprised to shriek again. That was just as
well, because it wasn’t all that ladylike.
    Instead he floated her to the floor
and she was hard pressed to say she didn’t enjoy the ride. To brace
herself, she placed a hand at each of his shoulders and enjoyed the
bulging muscles there.
    For some reason her mouth filled with
too much saliva again.
    By the time her feet connected with
the floor, Maria had already tapped her four inch