“Everything you’ve asked for has been stored on this memory stick,” she informed him, handing over a small black flash drive.
“Thank you.” Nuri took it and then stepped out into the hall, turning to glance back at Brix. “We’re done here, so I’ll be on my way.”
He didn’t for a moment think that would work, but he spun on his heels and headed down the hallway toward the elevator anyway, pulling N.I.M. from where it’d been hidden in his jacket pocket, listening closely as heavy footsteps followed behind him.
“N.I.M.,” Nuri whispered so as not to be overheard, “activate recording mode, and contact the Emperor through ShadowApp11. Mute incoming communications.” The orb vibrated once in his hand, silently indicating the instructions had been accepted, and he shoved it back into his pocket just as he entered the elevator.
The doors had barely begun to close when Brix appeared, but he didn’t get the chance to get a word out before the staffmember arrived as well. The three of them settled in, quiet as they descended to the main level.
“Have a pleasant rest of your day,” the woman said in parting once they’d arrived. She headed back toward the front desk, oblivious to Nuri’s discomfort.
Brix waited until they were outside before stopping him, grabbing onto his arm and spinning him around hard enough Nuri lost his footing.
He stumbled forward, hissing when Brix caught him and his hands settled intimately around his waist.
“Get off of me!” Nuri shoved him away and glared.
“Relax, I was only trying to prevent you from falling over.” To his credit, Brix was still keeping up the nice guy act as well as he could.
But now that Nuri had seen through it, there was no way he was going to be able to pretend otherwise.
“I’ll keep what you said about collecting stocks between us,” Nuri lied, “but I don’t want anything else to do with whatever you’re planning.”
“Don’t be such a coward,” Brix said. “Can’t you see I’m trying to help you?”
“No, and I also don’t understand why you’d bother with Rein Inc. in the first place. Your startup is doing really well.”
“I don’t care about Rein Inc. There’s only ever one thing my cousin had that I wanted, and its not some rusty old throne or anything as boring as a company.” Brix ran a hand through his hair, clearly frustrated now. “How about we go get lunch somewhere quiet, just the two of us? Okay? We can talk like we used to. Maybe—”
Nuri held up a hand, a bit incredulous by this turn of events. “Forgive me, Mr. Brixton, but I’m going to need some serious clarification. Are you…hitting on me right now?”
Brix blinked at him, staring for a moment as though waiting for Nuri to laugh and say it was just a joke. When that didn’t happen,helaughed, the sound awkward and filled with the same level of confusion Nuri currently felt. “You aren’t serious, are you?”
“We haven’t seen each other in years,” Nuri reminded. “I don’t know you like I used to. Perhaps I’m mistaken and—”
“Wow, when everyone on campus called you obtuse, they weren’t wrong, were they.” Brix rested his hands on his hips. “Literally everyone knew I liked you back then, Nuri. I thought you were just pretending not to know out of respect, but that’s not the case, is it. You really had no idea. Why else would I have made the moves on you that night at homecoming?”
Senior year of college, they’d attended a party together. Silver had been off on official Imperial Heir business with his father, and in a rare occurrence, Nuri wasn’t needed and had been left behind. Toward the end of the night, under the influence of too much booze and the twinkle of a sky of stars, he’d experienced a momentary lapse in judgement.
“It was nothing,” Nuri insisted.
“Nothing? My hand was down your pants and my tongue was in your mouth.”
“What does any of this have to do with buying up Rein Inc. stock?” This was a problem. When Silver found out—which he would, because like the genius he was, Nuri had already ordered N.I.M. to record all of this—he was going to be livid.
Mad at his cousin for trying to infiltrate his company.
And disgusted with Nuri for allowing a man he hated to touch him.
What if…What if this was enough to kill any lingering desire between them? What if Silver was so grossed out by Nuri hooking up with Brix, that he ended their game early?
That should have made Nuri happy, given him a sense of relief and hope even, but instead…Knots formed in his gut and he snatched N.I.M. out of his pocket in a near panic.
“N.I.M. end all transmissions,” he ordered frantically.
Brix’s eyes went wide. “…You were recording?!”
“I’m the Royal Secretary,” Nuri snapped, “of course I was recording.” He nibbled on his bottom lip. “This is bad. Really bad. I must be insane.”
