Was somebody laughing at her?

Narrowing her eyes, Stephanie whirled toward the sound. A short thin boy who looked a bit younger than her was walking toward her with a grin on his face that looked sardonic to her. He immediately began insulting her … first her clothes and then her dancing. How dare he! When her parents were alive and she was sheltered from the harsh realities of life, she might have cried and run away. But after nearly three years living on the streets of London, she had toughened up. Now living with her aunt and uncle, she had gone back to her refined ways. However, she didn’t have to be nice to somebody who treated her with such disrespect.

Stephanie’s disdainful gaze raked him up and down. “I’d rather be overdressed than covered in dirt,” she retorted. “Did you crawl out from under a rock or something?” She placed her hands on her hips defiantly. “I’d also prefer to dance alone than dance with you. What do you know about dancing anyway? I dare you to do better!”

For some reason, the young girl felt good inside. Could it be that she had been itching for a fight ever since she had moved to Whitby?