"It's good to see you, Anton," I reply with a smile. I creep closer to the nearest bonfire instinctively as a cold blast of winter air hits me. "This is amazing!"
"Wait until you see the reindeer." He starts forward. "Come!"
I hesitate. He's wearing a coat, but mine is hanging in the coatroom. Not wanting to disappoint him, I trail anyway, shivering when we leave the veranda. He leads me down a lit path towards an area off to the side where a simple wooden fence corrals five of the reindeer he's so proud of. They have a small barn behind them.
"Real reindeer!" Anton proclaims and stands aside, sweeping his arm towards the animals. "They are on loan for Christmas."
"They're beautiful!" I murmur and approach the railing. There's a bucket of apples on my side. I reach in to grab one and hold it out to the nearest animal.
At once, all five crowd around. Soft muzzles and warm puffs of breath brush across my hands. I reach down for more apples. Delighted by the sight and softness of their fur, I grin.
"I finished your secret project," I tell him over my shoulder. "I brought it with me to show you."
"Did you see your other projects?" he asks with a mischievous smile.
"I did coming in. It's awesome to see them brought to life like this."
"There are more on the trees and on the family floor and all the guest rooms."
Pleased by the fact he really did like them, I trace my fingers down the furry neck of one reindeer, awed by the thickness of the downy coat. I'm shaking from cold but too enamored by the animals to care.
"Baba, you dragged her out in the cold with no coat on," Petr chides his father.
My awareness of everything heightens to the point I feel like I might shatter. For a few seconds, I forget to breathe. My heart slams into my chest like a jackhammer. Since talking to Simon, I've tried over and over to think of what to say to Petr when I saw him again, how to tell him I'm ready for that dinner without sounding … weird. Or desperate. Or too eager.
A reindeer nipping my fingers breaks the spell, and I bend down for another apple.
"I'm all right," I say through chattering teeth.
His scent sweeps over me, accompanied by a jacket warmed by his body heat. He drapes his coat over my shoulders. I shiver for a different reason, start to object, then sink into the warmth.
"And you should've called me to pick you up," Petr chides me.