Frost crunched and snapped under Hunter's boots as he juggled coffee and cookies. With the city still half-asleep, and recalling that Ada wasn't a creature to rise before the sun, Hunter knew the token bribe of caffeine and sugar was required to save his head from being ripped off his shoulders.

So he'd made a point of swing over to Starbucks on his way over, a doppio espresso for him and a sugar laden Grande pumpkin spice latte for Ms. West, along with a couple of still-warm-from-the-oven chocolate chip cookies.

In the dim light of a pale predawn, he saw a lone figure jogging down the empty sidewalks lined with stumpy bricked buildings housing commercial enterprises yet to open for the day. A brisk morning, he supposed, the temperatures friendly enough for someone obviously committed to their figure and shape to take advantage of. Clearly female shape at that, and moved with a confident, athletic stride he would have once envied. As she drew to stop, bent at the waist and breathed slow and deep, his heart sped and his skin sizzled with recognition.

Time reeled in like a measuring tape, spooling in fast so the years disappeared as those tumbling golden curls spilled from the knit hat she'd pulled from her head.

There was no mistaking Lynn Summers, not even at the distance he was quickly devouring between them. She'd come to Toronto each year June to late September. as a reward for Lynn's hard work – they agreed to let her explore other mediums of dance during her summer vacation. Lynn had researched a program in Toronto which she enjoyed.

Argentine Tango. Hip hop and Jazz, contemporary and Broadway. She soaked it all up with a hunger and passion Hunter had never seen in anyone before. She'd met his sister while working there on an internship for business administration/co-op and brought her home to meet the family.

Hunter had fallen in love the second she walked in the front door. And when summer gave way to fall, he would count the days to her return until someone above had answered his prayers when she'd moved to Toronto for good at eighteen. She stood, bracing the lamp post with one leg cocked back so she could stretch.

"Lynn!" Setting down his offering of coffee and goodies on the exterior bench of a café a few doors down from Ada's studio, he caught the curve of her arm, drew her around.

And was dazzled.

Even after three years, Lynn knocked the breath out of his lungs. From the instant he'd touched down on Canadian soil, the excited eagerness of a boy gripped him at the thought of seeing her after all this time. And, as if manifested from his deepest hopes and desires, here she was, wrapped in a short athletic jacket and white knit hat, her tumble of golden curls spilling down her back, blue eyes bright against pale cheeks flush with winter cold and rush of adrenaline.

At the sound of a strong voice calling out her name, Lynn's body froze into a shock of cold that was all recognition and female knowing. She didn't have to turn to know that voice and when she did, the sight of him took her breath away.

"Hunter! Wow—" Struck and at a loss, Lynn accepted his quick embrace, and—god, he smelled incredible. Musk, leather, spicy soap and something that was all him, all deep and sensual and male. His lips brushed against her cheek and she felt the grain of stubble on his chin, sending a shocking ripple down to her toes.

"You look fantastic." Hunter beamed, holding her back at arms' length. "What's it been? Three years?" Yet for all that time, just now it felt as if all of that time suddenly compressed into nothing more than vapor that evaporated in an instant.

"There abouts," she agreed, belly in knots and mind going fuzzy. Good God, where did he get that body? And was amazed what could happen in three years since she'd last seen him in person. He'd certainly done a lot of growing up while she'd been away. Of his siblings, Hunter was the tallest, but unlike the rest of the Mercer household, Hunter shared none of their colouring.

His hair was a shade of rich caramel with gilded edges that made her think of thick, luscious honey. Attraction struck her in the belly, a quick, reeling jab she was worried would resurface the moment they locked eyes. It seemed his time away in Europe had done little to temper this unnerving effect that overcame her senses every time she was in his presence.

Nerves, excitement, she told herself. But as they drew closer, the stir grew to a flutter.

"I had no idea you were home. When did you get back?"

"Yesterday. Surprised mom in time for dinner." And the picture of it in her mind made Lynn smile to know Mrs. Mercer woke up on her birthday morning with her baby boy home.

"Barely home twenty-four hours." Because her hands were suddenly itching to do something, anything, Lynn tucked them into her coat pockets. "What brings you out at this hour?"

"Stopping by to see Ada." And instead of reaching to retrieve the tray, Hunter thrust his hands in his pockets before they gave into the urge to latch on to the knotted length of her scarf and yank her forward.

"You came bearing goodies, I see." Lynn slanted a glance down at the cooling coffee and cookies. "That'll make her smile."

"It seemed like the thing to do, since I'm dragging her out of bed before noon."

She smiled at him. "That's sweet of you. You're such a great friend." He didn't sigh, but he wanted to.

"So I've been accused, from time to time." Her laugh was exactly what he'd expected, but there was something there, he noted, looking into those fascinating blue eyes. Worry, maybe. Stress?

I should let her go, he thought. Somewhere inside and out of this cold but selfishly, he wanted to extend this private moment with her. In the snowy quiet of pre-dawn. And reached for something, anything, else to talk about.

"I guess I wasn't the only one up early to take care of business, eh?" He flicked those deep burnished eyes from Studio West back to her; the irises of deepest gold with hints of green. Even after all these years apart, she knew their every fleck and facet. Would know them even in her dreams.

For a single moment, Lynn lost her tread. Her focus.

"Hm? Oh—yeah. Running clears my head in the mornings and the weather seemed forgiving enough to let me indulge in a solid three miles." She blew out a slow, single breath, watched it mist, white and filmy only to bleed away into the cold, leaving her bare and exposed to his arresting gaze. "How was your showing in Rome?"

"Beautiful," he affirmed, though he was sure his mother had more than kept Lynn current on his travels and affairs. "And impossible to sum up in five minutes. Why don't you swing by the house Sunday so I can tell you more about it? Mom's having the family over for dinner to celebrate her birthday."

"Oh, yes, I know. Darcy's already—"

"Of course she did." Hunter interceded, mentally smacking heel of his hand to brow for his thoughtless stupidity. Why wouldn't his sister have invited one of her best friends over for one of a million family gatherings? "So, I'll see you there? Tomorrow night?"

"Yes. Tomorrow." Lynn nodded, taking a hasty step back when her foot caught on a patch of ice.

Legs locked—arms flailing—curses spouting with an unladylike squeal, Lynn's feet skidded out from under her.

Shot up!

Prepared for the hard, embarrassing fall, she clamped her eyes shut in the dizzying shift of gravity, when arms snatched her from the air, yanking her against a firm, muscled body.

"Careful." Arms around her waist, he steadied her while she regained her footing.

"Yes, thank..." She was in his arms, Lynn realized, a little dazed and breathless. And right now she wished he wasn't so roughened and ridiculously sexy with a scrap of early morning stubble on his face.

A contrast to the dark leather jacket and charcoal scarf draped around his shoulders, the neck of the coat undone revealing the navy knit sweater with a subtle v showcasing his strong neck that only brought her eyes up to his kiss-inviting lips, and the quiet but watchful eyes that were watching her now.

"You okay?" Not quite ready to let her go just yet, he brought one hand to her cheek and caught the leap of her pulse where it hammered in her throat. "You almost gave me a heart attack."

They stood, bodies brushing, eyes connected as pale morning light filtered through the veil of somber clouds. She smelled of winter and a hint of spice from her perfume that made him think of mulled cider and kindling fires. Her eyes had gone soft, but the colour so quiet yet intense with expression, held him for a moment.

Then another, so that his heart, already racing, now leapt to a gallop.

"It's fine. I'm fine." Why did he have to look at her like that? So deeply, so intensely? Assessing, and probably seeing too damn much. He was just a friend. An old family friend. But he wasn't looking at her, she realized, in a way that seemed particularly friendly. Lust coiled in her belly, long, and slow, as his gaze slid down to her mouth.

Held there.

Oh god, move. Move you idiot, before you make a fool of yourself.

"Sorry," she murmured, smiled, her eyes leaping and shifting from his face towards the direction of her Plié, where she imagined fleeing upstairs to the haven of her apartment. "I should get...going." Her hands, twined behind his neck, loosened, and she pushed back, or tried to since his grip was rigid as steel.

"What?" Hunter swallowed, throat raw and belly in knots. "Oh, right." And let her go. Lynn took two large steps away from him, creating distance.

A void.

Dammit.

Hunter expelled an icy cloud of frustrated white. "Do you want to come in—Ada?" Numbly, he jerked a thumb towards the studio. The wind shifted around them, and a light snow began to fall in thick and heavy flakes, a fact he only noticed as one brushed along her cheek, pink with cold, and settled there with an icy kiss.

"I—ah, no. I should get going. Bye, and..." she stepped back again, thrusting her hands back into her pockets, smiling in her usual sort of way that always struck him dazzled and dumb. "Thanks, again. Catching me."

"Anytime," he answered, but was already talking to her back as she hit the sidewalk with a speedy stride. As he watched her disappear, Hunter allowed himself a rare moment to hope.

And wonder.

y"s*JYSDUB