"Is there any way you'll consider coming?" he presses. Normally, he moves on when I refuse. "I won't be in tomorrow morning to ask twice," he adds with a wink.

God, how I want to say yes. The good thing is that it'd be like the Thanksgiving feast: crowded, little time to slip further from my resolve not to fall for Petr. Their mansion is huge enough that I'd be surprised if the entire town wasn't there.

I can tell it means more to him than he's letting on, too. The casual question and smile are hiding depth of emotion I've been corralling as well.

Todd will throw a fit if we don't go. There's another reason I need to go to his party, one I hadn't thought of before. I have to turn over the graphic I've been designing to Anton.

And … well I owe him for all he's doing for Todd. I don't need to stay long, though I feel obligated to show up.

"We'll come," I decide. "Wednesday or Thursday?"

"Come Wednesday and stay as long as you like. We open up the guest wings and cottages for a few days so friends and family can stay. Or you can crash on my floor. Plenty of room for you to stay the night."

I knock his coffee cup over in a clumsy attempt to refill it.

Dammit, Claudia! My face is hot. I try not to read anything into the fact he's asking me to spend the night. After all, he's inviting half the town to do the same.

Petr's striking eyes are twinkling mischievously. He knows I'm not clumsy, though thankfully, he doesn't call me on it.

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"Sorry." I wipe up the mess hastily.

Without looking at him directly again, I move away. My insides are on fire, the memory of our kiss rendering me too flustered to realize I'm heading the wrong direction until I reach the edge of the dining room and have to turn around to return to the kitchen.

Passing him again, I don't give Petr the satisfaction of giving him a firmer response about our plans. He's smiling, so I don't think he really cares, as long as we're showing up at some point.

He leaves shortly after, and I start to process the world around me once more.

I'm itching to call Simon again. Whereas I used to contact him once every two to four weeks, I've been calling him nearly three times a week since Thanksgiving. I tell him it's because I miss my mom around the holidays. The truth is that I'm hurting for good news. Todd is growing attached to Petr to the point I hear him talk about little else. While happy for my brother, I'm also concerned about what another sudden move will do to him, especially with how much he worships Petr.




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