Winter's body went stiff.
Zara took an instinctive step back, adjusting Leo in her arms as she sized up the newcomer. The way they had thrown themselves at Winter with such familiarity—it set off every alarm in her head.
Winter barely had time to register the impact before strong arms wrapped around him, holding tight.
His breath caught. His body tensed out of habit, years of survival instincts screaming at him to shove the person off—
Her fingers twitched, ready to react, but before she could move, Winter did something that made her freeze.
He laughed.
A small, disbelieving sound escaped him, and then, to Zara's complete shock, he pulled the woman into a tight hug.
Zara blinked.
Winter. Hugging someone.
Zara had seen Winter in many states—calm, tense, ruthless, cold. But this? This was new.
His hands gripped the back of Ima's jacket as if making sure she was real, as if letting go meant she might disappear again.
