AllFreeNovel
Share Us
The air was filled with shouts, laughter, and the soft thud of snowballs meeting their targets. I couldn’t remember the last time I’d had such light-hearted fun—especially not without the assistance of a few too many cocktails. The worries of my job, the negotiations, all melted away in the simple, exhilarating joy of the moment.
At some point, our defenses were breached, and a group of kids swarmed us, giggling and wild-eyed. I had a brief moment of feeling like I might have stepped into some horror film—Children of the Corn, Winter Wonderland.Ondrej and I surrendered, throwing our hands up in mock defeat. The kids declared themselves the victors in a cacophony of Czech cheers and shouts.
I was both heaving and laughing as the kids finally scampered off in a flurry of parkas and fuzzy hats.
“You’ve got a pretty good arm there,” Ondrej said, brushing a smattering of snow off his coat.
I shrugged, trying to hide my own grin. “I’ve had some practice.”
“During those long, harsh Los Angeles winters?”
I laughed and shook my head. “During my years playing Varsity softball. At my size, I was never going to be a power hitter, but I learned to throw.”
Ondrej made a show of studying me. “You are rather small for a full-grown human woman, aren’t you?”
“Hey, I’m a full five feet, thank you.”
He tilted his head. “In heels?”
I glared and threw a snowball at his face.
For a moment, we just stood there, the sounds of the city returning to the foreground. The snowball fight had been a brief escape, a moment of pure, unadulterated fun. And for the first time, I saw Ondrej not as my adversary in a business deal but as someone who could laugh and play, someone unexpectedly... human.
I felt something on my cheek and realized it had started snowing.
Ondrej looked up. “We should probably get moving. The clouds look like a storm might be coming through.”
I let my gaze drift up and eyed the ominous clouds forming. I was unexpectedly disappointed. I found myself hoping that this day would linger a little longer, that the streets of Prague would keep unfolding their magic, and that I could keep seeing this side of Ondrej–the version of him who laughed freely and threw snowballs with the skill of a naughty child.
“Yes, I guess so,” I said, trying to hide my disappointment.
“Come on. You need hot chocolate,” Ondrej said.
I laughed as though it was a joke. “Hot chocolate? At—” I checked my phone. “9:30 in the morning?”
He shrugged. “Yes.”
“I would, but I’m not six.”
He rolled his eyes. “Says the woman who just had a snowball fight in the middle of the street.”
“Hmm. Fair point. Where does one get hot chocolate?”
“Where does one not? There is a little shop over there. We can warm up before we walk back to the hotel.”
“Have you always lived in Prague?” I asked as we settled into a cozy table by a crackling fire. I warmed my hands around a mug of decadent hot chocolate that smelled like cinnamon.
“I have. I was born in the heart of the city. I’m pretty sure I will die here,” He said with a wry smile. “I do love to travel, don’t get me wrong. I’ve been lucky to visit many places. But I guess I just really love my home.”
I smiled. “There’s nothing wrong with that. It’s a beautiful city. How did you learn English so well? All of you speak it practically natively.”
He sipped his chocolate, which left the faint trace of a brown mustache on his upper lip. “Well, in a way, we are native speakers. We all learned English from the start. It’s important when you are in a hotel. And let’s be honest, no one in the world speaks Czech.” He laughed.
“It’s not the easiest language I’ve ever come across.” I sipped my chocolate and thought I might just melt into a happy oblivion.
“We actually all speak multiple languages.”
“Really? What else?”
