Page 41 of The Grumpy Billionaire

I turned around and there she was, snapping her gum, bracelets stacked halfway up her arm. Charlie’s little sister.

“It doesn’t give bills in change. Only quarters. But it runs out sometimes.”

“Do you have a quarter I can borrow until later?” I asked.

“Nope,” she said.

“Would you do me a huge favor, then?” I asked. “Will you guard the machine here and not let anybody use it until I come back with a quarter? I can be back in under four minutes.”

She’d sauntered up and leaned on the machine, clinking quarters around in her hand. “You go ahead and run back there, Hugo.”

“You’ll guard it until I return?”

“I won’t let any other kids get a cheap snack if that’s what you mean.”

This all seemed too good to be true. I’d only just met Stella, and we’d never even had a conversation, but I’d observed her enough to be wary. “I’m asking if you’ll guard it for me.”

“Sure, I’ll guard it. And you see that hill up there? The second you’re out of sight over that hill, I’m gonna get a pack of sour gummy worms for a quarter.”

It took me a little while to process this. “You can’t do that.”

She widened her brown eyes, as if in shock.

“It’s my money in the machine,” I explained.

“Get it out, then.”

“Obviously that’s not possible.”

Glittery toenail polish sparkled through the sandals that she wasn’t supposed to be wearing—camp rules called for sneakers. “I don’t mind waiting.”

“But as soon as I turn my back, you’re gonna buy gummy worms for a quarter.”

“You catch on fast, genius boy.”

I couldn’t believe it. I was the king of math camp. The god of math camp. Nobody messed with me.

Except Stella.

“Fine. I’ll pay you a quarter to guard it,” I said.

She tilted her head, eyes sparkling. “I may not know algebra, but I know I’m about to save a buck on a nice fat pack of gummy worms, and I think I like that better.”

This girl. I couldn’t believe it.

“I’ll wait, too.”

She seemed delighted that I’d said this. “Five minutes until the bell, according to my phone.”

I gritted my teeth, wishing some other kid would come along with a quarter for me to borrow. Any kid would be glad to help me, especially if it meant putting Stella, the math camp pariah, down a few pegs.

“The bell applies to you, too,” I tried.

“Does it, though?” More gum snapping.

Stella was always late, always getting yelled out, even getting after-dinner screen time taken away.

It’s here I saw my angle. “You might lose screen time.”

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