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It seemed she didn’t mind arguing with me then, given the annoyance in her tone. I took it as a challenge.
I pointed at a smaller tree that sat directly between our properties. It certainly had its fair share of decorations on it too. “I don’t want this here.”
“Is it that big of a deal?” she asked in return, sighing to herself. “They’re just decorations. Most people on our block have the same things up. It’s festive.”
“It’s absurdly tacky, and I didn’t agree to it.”
It was Sara’s turn to stitch her brows together in disbelief, along with a scowl. “What’s your problem?”
Something about her sudden defiance only riled me up more. I took a step closer. “My problem is that I don’t want to see this nonsense every time I look outside.”
“There are bigger problems to have!”
“There are, which is why I don’t need you adding more to my list,” I muttered back, watching how the thoughts scurried through her eyes.
“I don’t remember waking up and deciding to ruin your day by decorating my house,” Sara mumbled sarcastically as she crossed her arms over her chest. Those brown eyes, which had normally been filled with such brilliant light, had nothing but disdain within them. “It sounds like a you problem.”
“There was no problem until you created one for me.”
Her gaze narrowed, and her face was pink with anger. “I could say the same thing.”
“Look, just take them down and you won’t hear another complaint from me,” I tried to reason.
While I wanted the chance to get a better look at her by prolonging the disagreement, the longer it went on, the worse my headache became. It seemed I had bit off more than I could chew, and my irritation was getting the best of me.
Sara scoffed and looked even angrier than she had been. “Why would I concede to you? Last time I checked, you don’t get to boss me around!”
Rubbing at my temples, I couldn’t see a clear path out of it. The thought of going in a constant circle of bickering was enough to make me long for my bed.
“I’m not in the mood for this,” I grumbled, breaking the tension between us to head for my front porch.
The furious expression stitched into Sara’s face stained my mind as I walked away, and while it enraged me, I was sure to memorize it as best as I could.
She was youthful and vibrant, even in her passionate anger. I just wasn’t in the headspace to deal with it any longer.
“You’re such a grump!” Sara shouted at me from her place on the lawn.
While it didn’t have the most sting to it, her tone was sincere. She genuinely thought I was a grouch.
To be fair, she had somewhat of a point. She was infuriating and so bubbly that I didn’t want her stomping all over my peace and quiet. Even if I was intrigued by her, she was a threat to the very harmony I wished for.
Shaking my head, I went up the steps and made my way inside.
My neighbor was beautiful, but she grated my nerves to no end.
***
I hadn’t been to Donovan’s garage myself since moving to town, but I had heard business was good for him.
Shutting off my bike engine, I swung myself off and peeled off my helmet. The sound of wrenches clanking and air compressors whirring echoed from within the steel building. With the garage door open to let the breeze in, I spotted some of his techs busy at work.
Not sure where the owner himself was, I entered through the front office and found him talking to the receptionist.
At my entrance, Donovan turned and lifted his brows in surprise. “Griffin. How can I help you?”
While he didn’t seem too put off by me, the crossing of his arms put enough of a barrier between us to let me know I wasn’t entirely on his good side.
“I was actually wondering if you needed a hand around here,” I stated confidently.
