Ingrid laughed a little when Alexei teased her, but she caught her breath when he spanned her waist with his hands. A rush of pleasure at the thought of the differences between them - his height and strength compared to her petite, fragile stature - coursed through her.<br/><br/>He was standing so close to her, so near, so handsome in his uniform, with all the scars buried underneath...scars she would discover tomorrow night, when there was no uniform, no ballgown, nothing between them. She would see his body, and he would see hers. Her body would belong to him, then, his and none other's to do with as he pleased. The thought was both frightening and fascinating, and she trembled slightly from the rills of pleasure running through her body.<br/><br/>She worried that her expression would give away the wanton, unladylike (and certainly unvirginal) thoughts and feelings she was experiencing. Quickly, she turned in his grasp to pick up her delicate carved ivory fan from the table next to the full-length mirror, only to look up and lock gazes with him in the mirror, her chest rising and falling with the intensity of her breath.