Page 28 of Mountain Grump

---

I pinchthe bridge of my nose.

This girl cannot be real.

Chapter 15

Tilda

Scissors back in hand,I take a calming breath.

Climbing through the fence wasn’t my most graceful moment, but all is well. Nothing seems torn, just disheveled.

The song playing from my hip reaches a crescendo as I take the couple of steps to the first cluster of flowers.

I bend, aligning my scissors with the base of the stem.

The singer holds a high note.

And a voice sounds from beside me.

“Don’t cut that.”

I scream.

My arm jerks.

The scissors shut.

And I tip forward.

Chapter 16

Ethan

I clenchmy stomach muscles and grit my teeth, urging my blood to stay where it is.

But Tilda is on her hands and knees before me.

Ass in the air.

And my thoughts are backstroking through the gutter.

Because I want to kneel behind her.

I want to kneel behind her, flip her skirt up onto her back, and…

She pushes herself up so her hands are no longer on the forest floor. And she twists her torso to glare at me.

Her purple hair is a curly mess.

Her cheeks are hot with emotion.

Her hands have dirt on them.

And she looks exactly like the troublesome mountain fairy she is.

She points a finger at me. “You, sir, are a bastard.”

She’s not smiling at me this time.

---