“Tom Baker, who occupied the Tardis between 1974 and 1981, is the longest-serving doctor on Dr. Who. In Harry Potter, dragon’s blood is an effective oven cleaner. Yoda is sixty-six centimeters tall, but still one of the most powerful Jedis of all time.”
My cheeks blow up as I cast my eyes around the room, spotting Levi near the pizza line, twirling his drumsticks. He’s grinning at me, but it’s not one of those grins like he’s making fun of me. He’s smiling like now he gets it. Why I was “lost.” He rolls his drumstick in the air, telling me to keep going.
I look over at the D&D table and let all the air out of my cheeks. People are starting to laugh, but I ignore them.
“There’s a seventy-five percent chance of a blink dog appearing behind you, based on a 12-sided die. The Oathblow whispers to its wielder in Elven. The main attack of the Demi-Lich is soul trapping, which is majorly badass! It’s been a while since I played but I still know what STR, DEX, CON, INT, WIS, and CHA stand for.”
I turn to Zak and smile. “I’m fluent in Tolkien’s Elvish language… both of them. Though I prefer Sindarin over Quenya.”
And with that, in true geeky fashion, I step down from the table, tripping over my feet and smashing face-first into someone’s lunch tray. Everyone busts out laughing, and if my face wasn’t covered in mashed potatoes and chocolate pudding, they would see how red it is.
So much for marching straight into Zak’s arms and giving him the kiss I planned on giving him. He’s standing right where he was during my nerd explosion. He’s smiling, not laughing at me, but giving me that same smile he gave me yesterday when he said he missed me.
I really wish I wasn’t covered in food.
Then without hesitation at all, he grabs a tray and dumps it over his head. He marches to me, not wiping my face or anything before he plants a whopper of a kiss on my lips.
I know people are laughing at how gross this is, and some are probably stunned straight to hell at this more-than-disgusting public display.
You know what? I don’t frakking care.
“That. Was. The. Sexiest. Thing. I’ve. Ever. Seen,” he says between kisses. I’m smiling even though my lips are super busy right now. Gosh, he’s so amazing. I don’t care if everyone thinks I’m a friggin’ nerd. I am a nerd, but I like it. I like this. All of it. All of him. And he likes me too.
We stand there and make-out while the cafeteria makes fun of us and tosses more food in our direction. But there’s no way I can feel anything but happy right now. They’re all just a bunch of people who don’t understand.
And the people who do, I can hear them too. A few calls of “Way to go, Zak!” and “Dude, that was awesome!” reach my ears through all the noise. And even if no one else understood, what the heck does it matter? I’m finally, finally being myself. All the way.
Zak pulls from my lips, taking his plaid shirt off and wiping my face. I wipe his at the same time.
He smiles that beautiful and perfect smile I don’t ever want to see go away.
“Amin mela lle.”
Holy Tardis. I just made a complete idiot of myself, ruined my popular reputation, and lost most of my friends. Maybe Hope will come around, I really hope she does. And maybe Zak’s buds will forgive me at some point. The humiliation may be enough for them to say I got what was coming to me. And tonight when I get home, it won’t be the food thrown at me or the whispers or insults that I’ll remember. It’ll be this moment, right here. Because none of that other stuff matters. Today has just become one of the best days of my freaking life.
I pull Zak’s face toward mine, talking against his lips.
“I totally love you, too.”
Acknowledgements
Thank you Google, for confirming all my nerdy knowledge, and making me proud when I got it right.
Thank you reader, for getting to this page, and for sticking with Zak and Zoe and all their geekisms.
Thank you Potterheads, Whovians, Jedi Knights and Sith Lords, for collecting, reading, dressing up, posting inside fandom jokes, and basically being the most awesome people on earth. It’s people like you who inspired me to write this.
Thank you Amy, Erica, and Georgia, for all those red notes, for dealing with a million emails from me, and for making this book a thousand times better than it was when I first wrote it.
Thank you Georgia, Mandy, and all you other Swoon Romancers, for taking care of my nerdy baby, giving it a kick butt cover (thank you Su!!!), and dealing with my booty shaking celebrations.
Thank you Brittany, for reading this book in one sitting, for loving it as much if not more than I do, and for fighting so hard to get it out in the world.
Thank you Mommy, for showing off my books everywhere you go, for letting me talk your ear off about characters and funny moments, for always telling me to write down my ideas, and for telling me you’re proud of me. You make me feel like the luckiest daughter in the world.
Thank you Becki, Jenny, and Jon-Jon for being nerdy siblings. And thank you Daddy, for watching Lord of the Rings every Saturday for about three years.
Thank you stick shifts, for making sexy men even sexier.
Thank you Hope Roberson, Jenny Morris, Kelley Lynn, Leigh Covington, Jade Hart, Suzi Retzlaff, Rachel Schieffelbein, Jennie Bennett, Jessica Salyer, and Lizzy Charles for being schweet critique partners, for loving Zak and Zoe, for leaving LOL’s on my manuscript, and for being my friends. I love you guys more than a Star Wars fan loves to quote Yoda.
Thank you Angie Cothran, Emily King, Ilima Todd, Jolene Perry, and Kyra Lennon for beta-ing this Nerdy baby of mine, and always being my support beams.
Thank you Peggy at Le’ BookSquirrel, Kristin at I Heart Books, Anitra at Can’t Read Just One, and Lauren Sweeney at Madison Says for lighting up my Facebook feed with my books, sharing my statuses, and basically being all around KICK BUTT book bloggers.
Thank you Theresa Paolo, for being my constant ear. For loving the story before you even read it. For taking this journey with me. Letting me IM you and email and call and text even if it’s midnight your time, and knowing exactly what to say. I would never make it through a manuscript if it wasn’t for you.
Thank you Harry Potter Scene It, for inspiring this story.
Thank you children, for telling Mommy to play Lego Star Wars and use it as research. I agree, kiddos.
And last, because I always save you for last… Thank you Joshy poo, for playing HALO on our first date, for quoting Ninja Turtles when you first held my hand, for saying you love me when we went and saw Harry Potter, for proposing with the ring box upside down, for wanting Han Solo and Princess Leia on top of our wedding cake, and for letting me keep a giant poster of Edward Cullen in the computer room. You are my nerdy love story.
Cassie Mae
Cassie Mae is a nerd to the core from Utah, who likes to write about other nerds who find love. Her angel children and perfect husband fan her and feed her grapes while she clacks away on the keyboard. Then she wakes up from that dream world and manages to get a few words on the computer while the house explodes around her. When she’s not writing, she’s spending time with the youth in her community as a volleyball and basketball coach, or searching the house desperately for chocolate.
Cassie Mae is an Amazon.com bestselling author of the teen contemporary romance novel REASONS I FELL FOR THE FUNNY FAT FRIEND, which she self-published. In addition to publishing with Swoon Romance, she is published by Random House Flirt.
Table of Contents
Title page
Chapter One
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
>
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Acknowledgements
Cassie Mae
Table of Contents
Title page
Chapter One
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Acknowledgements
Cassie Mae
Cassie Mae, How to Date a Nerd
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