Frog Tale Read Online Free PDF Page A

struggled to find her voice. “I must have hit it against something when we were fighting.”
    He sighed and turned to Stella. “Go to your room. I’ll be there in a minute.”
    Stella plastered a smile on her face so insincere, Chloe wanted nothing more than to lunge at her sister and punch the smirk right off her pretty face. “Try not to get to mad at her , Daddy. She was just protecting the mutant frog.”
    Her heart tightened. Luc wasn’t a mutant, he was special.
    Chloe pivoted on her heel and stared at her sister. Again, it took every ounce of control not to grab that blond ponytail again as her sister stomped out of the room and down the hall. At least Luc was safe for another day. If it wasn’t Georgina after him or threatening him, it was Stella.
    Her father’s gaze bore into her and she didn’t need to look up to know he was studying her. “Did your sister slap you?”
    She didn’t answer.
    “Chloe, tell me the truth and don’t worry, I won’t let your sister hurt Luc.” Her dad sounded sincere but she also knew he had little control over the blonde demonic terrors from hell posing as her siblings.
    She finally glanced to her father. “Dad―”
    “ Answer me.” His voice held a sternness which surprised her and the expression on his face revealed he wasn’t backing down on this, he expected an answer.
    “ Yes.” She turned away and walked over to Luc, safe in his glass castle then stared into his big brown eyes, they held so much grief. As long as she focused on him though, her father couldn’t see her weakness or her defeat. Luc’s scar from his nasty cut had formed a thick line of tissue down to his puffy cheek. He meant something to her and may only be a frog, but he was also her friend.
    Her father cleared his throat. “Stella is ungrateful. She takes a lot for granted.”
    If her dad’s words were supposed to be a comfort, they fell short. She would never tell him how she felt about the amphibian or he would share her sisters’ opinion of her being crazy, nor did her father need to know how she longed to be beautiful like her sisters. She would settle for her plain looks if being pretty meant being mean.
    “Talk to me , Chloe.”
    “ Stella is pretty and popular at school. She and Georgina are both beautiful and have a ton of friends and...” Turning away from her frog, she smiled at her father. “I’ll be fine. I just wish sometimes I was more like them. I always feel like the odd one out. The ugly duckling if you will.”
    Her father shoved his hands in his pockets and his expression revealed worry. “Chloe―”
    She had to escape before he saw the threat of tears in her eyes. “I’ll be fine, Dad. I’m going to get a glass of milk.” She walked toward her door. “Thanks anyway.” She smiled over her shoulder at him, though she knew the gesture lacked sincerity. “You better check on Stella in case she broke a nail or lost an eyelash in our altercation.”
    She didn’t wait for a reply, instead, stepped out of the room and wondered what it would take to be pretty like her sisters.
    Maybe one day, I’ll know. A girl can dream.

Chapter 3
     
    Luciano hated how sad Chloe looked as she walked out of the room. She was quite protective over him. In truth he was protective over her as well. Too bad he was the size of a tennis ball and not the strong, large hero that fairy tales made out. If she were a few years older and he not a frog, things would be different―very different.
    “What happened?” Albert shut her bedroom door and stared at him.
    “Stella being Stella,” he replied. “Albert, Stella and Georgina treat Chloe horrible. Hell, they treat everyone not like them, horrible. You should hear them with their friends. They’re mean.” He frowned, mean was an understatement. “I’m sorry to tell you this, but Stella and Georgina are not very nice people and are menaces to society.”
    “I appreciate your honesty, you’re a good―”
    “I know.” He liked