#ivan ft. lydia (01)

[musebluebird]

𝒍𝒚𝒅𝒊𝒂 & 𝒊𝒗𝒂𝒏│closed starter for @cursivebloodlines

He'd like to know how the hell he'd ended up in that position. He knew how it had happened. Not that he liked to admit that it had been his mistake, but it was. Of course everyone or almost everyone in the business knew Lydia's family, especially Lydia's father, what he didn't imagine is that his daughter would witness how Ivan murdered a guy. Ivan internally blamed her, the curiosity killed the cat as they said but he also knew that it was not imperative to marry her. Her father had told him several times that she wouldn't say anything, but Ivan wasn't going to leave loose ends. Lydia was a volatile loose end who could hand it over whenever she wanted, even though she had no proof, Ivan didn't want to appear on the police radar.

The ceremony was fucking slow and eternal. No, he had a fucking migraine from having to listen to all that bullshit. Ironically, even tho he was a man with low standards he still attended church sometimes. He preferred less show and would have simply married in the court house but her father had wanted to use that as leverage for his benefit so Ivan had had to make concessions. He was almost sure that Lydia would have preferred the court house too, but the reality was that he hadn't talked much with her since the day they had arranged the marriage.

When the priest finished, Ivan took her cheek as the older man allowed him to kiss the bride. Honestly he didn't expect her lips to feel so good. They were soft, they were warm and they tasted like cherry. As Ivan pulled away from her, he found himself wanting more. "You should smile," he murmured softly before pulling away from her and offering his arm. Happy married life for both of them.

[musebluebird]

Ivan smiled sideways. So she did remember his question in the elevator. He definitely wasn't the only one who could feel the palpable sexual tension between them. "Has no one ever told you that you're very bossy?" He mocked, letting out a small chuckle before beginning to brush his lips against the bare skin of her leg. The sexual tension was palpable between them, Ivan believed that once they fucked he could - somehow - 'get' Lydia out of his system. "And very impatient, sweetheart." One of his hands slid down to cup her butt and gave her flesh a gentle squeeze. Ivan allowed himself to sink into her for a moment, softly pressing his lips to the back of her knee. He wanted to push her over the edge, almost have her in the palm of his hand begging him to give her what they both knew she wanted. It's not that Ivan didn't want it—nor did he want a serious case of blue balls—but part of him liked that side of her where Lydia turned into a pleading little thing under his touch. He liked the idea of taking her over the edge, having all that control over her. Did that make him a selfish bastard? Probably yes but Ivan wasn't going to deny that he wasn't one either. Not that he had expected before that day that sex would be on the table but at least he hoped he could come to an agreement with his wife about it. Mainly because after what his mother had experienced with his stepfather, Ivan was not going to go around fucking around unless the two of them agreed otherwise. Although after spending a little time with Lydia, Ivan wasn't sure he wanted to share her anymore, with anyone to be honest. Maybe they could add sex to whatever that marriage was going to involve. He wasn't going to complain if they fucked every morning and every night.

Her legs parted and he licked his lips in anticipation. One of his hands kept her dress up and with the other he allowed himself to trace the lace of Lydia's underwear with the tips of his fingers. White like her dress, apparently she was wearing stockings with a garter belt. The mere image made his cock hard and she also had some little matching lace panties. He was almost sure that she was one of those bridal lingerie sets and that the wedding planner had surely had something to do with it. If that was the case, Ivan was going to make sure to send the woman a gift. "I like this little thing that you have here tho, is this for me, honey? I feel blessed." He liked the way phrases like that managed to push Lydia's buttons and get on her nerves. The flirty tone was present in Ivan's voice. He had every intention of letting his wife know exactly what he was looking for. What did he want? Her. He wanted to feel her skin desperately, he wanted to kiss her, caress her, give her all his attention that night. Maybe backing out of their own wedding reception wasn't such a bad idea. After all, the worst thing that could happen was that some people were not going to be happy. The only thing stopping him was that Ivan needed to use this wedding as more than just an update on his marital status. He needed to use all of that as an advantage to elevate his status. It was no secret that Ivan was a kind of 'street dog', an underdog who had made his way through blood, sweat and tears. He had done what he had to do but now the fact that he was marrying Lydia somehow helped fix his position somehow. Whether he like it or not her dad was a person with enough power and Ivan could help himself a bit from that. Mutual benefit, right? He still would need to keep an eye open but a win was a win.

He kissed her inner thighs, taking his time on one leg and then her other leg nibbling mildly on the skin of her thigh before burying his face between her legs. His tongue traced her folds over the fabric of her panties. Bold move. He could feel her wetness, almost smell her anticipation for what it was coming. The hand that was on her butt pressed her even more against him. Ivan nibbled mildly on her skin before sliding his tongue along the edge of her panties. Teasing her was definitely a new challenge for Ivan which he found very entertaining. Lydia was like a box of surprises that he couldn't wait to discover. He allowed himself to gently slide her panties down her side just enough so that he could lick her folds, tasting her for the first time. "So damn sweet." The taste of her on his tongue was exquisite. Almost like an elixir. Damn. It was going to take all of his self-control not to plunge his cock into her at that exact moment. His cock was hard just thinking about it. She was a walking temptation and if he didn't fuck her soon, he would definitely have blue balls.

"Still, a bit extreme, don't you think?" Although on second thought, maybe not. Lydia was well aware of the importance of needing to be careful but even this seemed a bit like overkill. Besides, what was it he had said before? That if someone tried anything, he would know about it faster than she could even blink? Oh, and that nobody would even try anything because of his reputation. In different words and probably far fewer words but that was a reminder swirling around in her head. Did he really think people were pathetic enough to try and cause chaos on his wedding day? That being said, she supposed she could understand to a degree, given whatever he involved himself with. After finding out about her father, she'd never been the same since. Their relationship was rocky at best, and even Lydia knew she needed to tread very carefully around the man. At least Ivan was honest with her and she knew where she stood with him. If he caught her trying anything with him, she'd be dead. Heck, if she were a man, she would already be. They already had that conversation. But her father? Lydia knew he did not hesitate to stick a knife in someone's back, and she knew all it would take was a fraction of a second for him to turn on someone. He used people to his advantage, took what he could get from them to get ahead, and disposed of them when they weren't of use to him anymore, or a better offer came along. Whatever means necessary. He'd told her that to her face. The thought of him trying something today, his daughter's wedding day, had crossed her mind a couple of times but she dismissed it because he was too on board with the idea. Too eager. Which only made her unable to stand him even more. Encouraged her to stay as far away from the man as humanly possible. And she never even considered Ivan may have been concerned about him since they came up with the stupid idea between them and Lydia was forced - and very bitterly so - to go along with it. Deep down, though, she thought maybe somewhere, deep, deep down in whatever was left of his soul, he still loved his daughter but had the most peculiar way of showing it. That if it boiled down to it, he would not put his only daughter in jeopardy. To say she trusted him would be bullshit, though. Lydia didn't trust anyone, not anymore. Trust needed to be earned, and so far everyone proved time and time again that she could not trust anymore, no matter what.

His question about whether she could see her feet earned a laugh leaving her lips. A laugh! Was she actually laughing at something her husband said? Without any indicator of sarcasm or malice? That had to be a first for her today. Not to be mistaken for softening up for him because that wasn’t the case and would never be. At least, that was what she convinced herself of. She couldn't stand him or anything he stood for. Yet there were all of these filthy thoughts lingering in her mind, thanks to before. “No, not that I need to look at my feet but now I definitely can’t…Not with you and your big head blocking my vision.” A pathetic rebuttal, really. And a weak one for her. But it wouldn’t be Lydia if she didn’t come up with something or other. Or at the very least tried to sound like she was composed, put together. But this time, instead of it being spoken in the usual sour tone she had especially for him, it was more teasing and even playful. It was literally anything to distract her from all the other thoughts running rampant in her mind, trying to forget whatever that was back in the elevator. But no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't help but let her mind drift back to only moments before. God, this man was going to be the death of her. "Maybe they would. But now we'll never know because the hero of the hour is upon us. My two brain cells are eternally grateful." Quite possibly the nicest thing she had said to him this far. Were they...bantering? Such a peculiar feeling it was. She had grown accustomed to dishing out snide remarks and hearing sneering retorts in return. This? This was a bit different. Like they were actually joking. Like they were actually tolerating each other. Whatever. It meant nothing. She was sure it wouldn't take long before they were hurling insults at each other once again. With the buckles of her shoes removed, Lydia stepped out of them, letting her feet brush against the floor. Making no effort to put on the new pair.

Yet...the atmosphere changed once more. With a question from her husband's mouth, there was the sexual tension permeating the atmosphere once again. All that mental effort to sort herself out and shed whatever feelings she'd had back in the elevator, the attempts evaporated into thin air with a few mere words from Ivan. A wicked smirk graced the woman's lips as she carefully eyed him, considering her answer with a thoughtful hum, which turned into a quiet but audible gasp as his hand came into contact with her skin, brushing against her leg. Her pulse quickened, her stomach doing flips laced with both anticipation and excitement. "Need? Oh, I don't know - needing and wanting are two different things..." she teased, goosebumps rising against her skin at the contact. Growing impatient, Lydia needed him to do something - anything at this point. Preferably without interruption, but she was growing restless. How could she think straight when he was on the floor before her, his fingers exploring underneath her dress? His lips followed suit. "Ivan, please -" she let out a breath, breathing pattern growing heavier as his lips pressed against her thigh. Closer, but still not enough. And she was impatient. Lydia's eyes almost widened at the sound of her own voice, how needy she sounded - almost like she was about to beg him. But no, of course, she wasn't about to do that. She let her fingers brush through his hair, beckoning him a little more forward with a light push, adjusting herself so he was that little bit closer to where she so desperately craved him. "I think it's time you got that answer to your question back in the elevator," she murmured, her other hand reaching down to her dress, attempting to lift it up higher. His words echoed through her mind: If I lift up that dress, are you going to be wet? So bold, and if she were in the right mind, she would've ought to have slapped him for that. But at the same time, he had caught her off guard - and it didn't help how hot it sounded, coming from his mouth. She couldn't stop thinking about it. The what ifs. But hopefully, now she was about to get the answer to that question. Hopefully. "Now, preferably," Lydia added at the end, a signal of her impatience.

[musebluebird]

"I don't even trust my own shadow, princess" Ivan wasn't going to bluntly tell her that he didn't trust her father one bit. Her father looked like the kind of person who couldn't wait to stab anyone who presented a threat to his organization, no matter if they were allies and if he did it from behind. Ivan wasn't paranoid, he was just being careful. Especially if a dangerous man like Lydia's father was involved in the equation. He didn't care that he was married to the man's daughter, if Ivan had to guess, it made him an even bigger target because it had put him right under the man's radar. The fact that he was married to Lydia probably meant nothing to the man who hadn't hesitated to 'marry off' his daughter to a very dangerous man like him to begin with. That was weird cause, who would do that? but Ivan was glad he had gotten away with it without any conflict with her father after all. Even if they took her father out of the equation, the mere fact that she was married to him put her at risk. Just as Ivan had worked his way to the top with blood and sweat, he had left more than one unhappy person along the way. His wedding day would be a good day to get something done with all the attention on the celebrations. He made a mental note to have a talk with her in the next days. Lydia needed to be exactly aware of the danger she might be in. Well, she always had been due to her dad but now she was also married. Ivan saw no point in keeping her in the dark, smart as she was, knowledge was power in Lydia's case. She couldn't know everything or the dirty details but she needed to know she should have her eyes open. He needed her to understand the importance of trusting her instincts. If anything ever told her to get the hell out of a place, Lydia had to understand that she had to do that and then call her husband. With some luck she would keep her eyes open to anything that seemed strange and tell Ivan right away. Although something told him that she wouldn't call him cause she was just that proud and currently hated him that much no matter what her body said.

His fingers caressed her skin slowly. Her skin was warm, it was soft and Ivan could swear that he had the same scent of jasmine as her perfume. He rolled his eyes at her when he heard her "Yeah, sure, I bet you can" Her voice was full of sarcasm. Hopefully she could even see what color her shoes were. Ivan looked up to her and raised his eyebrows. "Can you even see your feet in this dress?" He replied with a mocking tone. If he were in her place, Ivan couldn't see his own feet. Mainly because in order to be able to take off her shows, Lydia needed lift her skirt and take off her shoes. Unless his wife was Wonder Woman, she would need help, and Ivan had known enough about Lydia in the past two hours to know that she was headstrong enough to risk a fall and break her neck rather than ask for help. the "I bet both of your brain cells would have a field day trying to bend down and find your feet at the same time you lift your skirt, sweetheart" He had every intention of sounding funny. At least if he was messing around he didn't have to think about how tempting she looked right now and the fact that for the first time since they were husband and wife, they were alone within four walls. Ivan ran her fingers through the buckle of one of her shoes and undid it before doing the same to the other. Ivan wanted more, he wanted to do something more than feel her skin on her fingers. If he had been up to it, he would have taken Lydia right there in that elevator without a problem. He would just stop the thing but he wanted to take his time exploring his cranky little wife.

"Do you have anything else for me around here, wife?" The tone shifted and now it was suggestive. That was a much nicer way for Ivan to ask her if she wanted something else from him. Something like his fingers or his mouth somewhere else. Now he knew for sure after the elevator thing that he wasn't the only one who was feeling all that sexual tension and heat when they were together. Also all that could be part of the flirtation that both seemed to have in that tug-of-war just married relationship. The position Ivan was in, still crouched in front of her, opened his mind to a universe of possibilities. Among them, doing something much more fun and satisfying for both of them than having to be eating dinner and greeting guests downstairs. In fact, if it weren't for face-saving reasons, Ivan would have no problem screwing everything up and staying in that bedroom with Lydia for the rest of the night. His fingers slid under her dress to just above her knee, caressing her skin and giving her a gentle squeeze "Or maybe you need something else from me?" His other hand moved up the fabric of her dress gently before exposing much of her legs and kissing the outer side of her thigh. It was a bold move but with everything that had happened in the elevator, Ivan hoped it would pay off.

How one man she couldn't stand simultaneously drove her to the brink of insanity was beyond her. Everything Ivan did was causing Lydia's judgment to become clouded and hazy, tainted by the powers of her husband's seductive tactics. Could she call it that? She was just as bad as he was, playing each other at their own game, seeing who would cave first. Ivan was a puzzle to decipher and if there was one thing she loved, it was finishing and solving puzzles. Why did she want to figure him out so badly? The first answer that came into mind seemed a bit too obvious - she had only gone and married him today, so it seemed perfectly reasonable in the wonderful world of Lydia to want to suss him out. It didn't mean anything. It couldn't. It was just her curiosity, much like the curiosity that landed her in this position to begin with. Tied to a man she vowed to have a burning hatred for, to cross his wires and scupper any plans he had for her. Which, she really wasn't sure what. It was hard to think straight in the midst of this heated moment. How could she focus when they were hellbent on tormenting each other? Their chemistry was off the charts, igniting fireworks through her body which only baffled her more. How she could even let someone like him touch her, and not for the simple fact that he was her husband. And liking it. It was a question she wanted to answer badly, but not before having her way with him. Or vice versa.

Ugh, even his audible response to her actions was throwing her off, how she craved to drag it out, to see what other sounds she could elicit from him, how hot he'd sound when he was finally inside her, the groans she'd muster from him when driven over the edge. Those thoughts alone, combined with his tongue seeking out the sensitive spots of her neck and back to her earlobe, with his hand pressing against her ass, set the rest of her body alight. It wasn't fair. A soft moan escaped her lips, allowing her to give into the moment. With the intention to run her hand through his hair, to tug it to yank his head back up and kiss him with the same burning intensity that he had done so with her earlier, needing the taste of his lips on her mouth again. However, the sound of the elevator was a rude awakening but the interruption she needed to bring her back to her senses. The soft ding had made her jump slightly, dropping her hands to her sides and clearing her throat to recompose herself. As if nothing had just happened. Back to reality. What the hell just happened though? Everything was so very confusing, felt all muddled. Lydia gave herself a second to sort herself out, smoothing down her dress before heading out of there.

Of course, he was back to his usual tricks with his stupid comments. Made her pissed that she was legitimately about to consider screwing this man in an elevator. Not that anything he had said was even remotely bad, just that getting annoyed at him was her default. So what if she was sexually frustrated on top of that? Ugh. This was hell. She rolled her eyes at the comment, remarking with, "Oh, I'm fine. I think you're the one who may need to contain his excitement though and be patient." A smirk etched on to her lips as she shamelessly eyed him up and down before trailing after him out of the doors and to the room to change her shoes. The whole idea of security here of all places was amusing to Lydia, to say the least. Was security necessary, for starters? It's not like they had the President or some famous celebrity behind it, for crying out loud. "I really don't know why you are treating this place like it's Fort Knox," she mused, her eyes observing the room carefully. Nothing special about it, what a waste of resources. In her humble opinion.

Confusion swept her features as she watched him crouch down to remove her shoes. A bit much, wasn't it? Such a simple gesture, it was...nice. Not a word she thought she would ever associate with him. "You don't have to..." Too late, he was already on the floor. "You do realise I am quite capable of changing my own shoes, don't you?" Lydia said, tilting her head a fraction as she eyed him carefully., specifically how well form-fitting his shirt was now she could see him without the jacket on. He looked so attractive, again, it was unfair. And funnily enough, she felt quite satisfied, looking at him from this angle. Anyway - back to her rational thoughts. What was his goal here, specifically? Nobody was around; it wasn't like he needed to pretend to be the doting husband who cared about his wife enough to help her. Her mind couldn't help but wander. Thinking back to the way Ivan asked her what she specifically wanted, or how he helped back her up when her father tried to get to her, or how he was now by her feet, helping her with her shoes. It was...nice. Thoughtful. Words that she never ever wanted to associate with him. It confused her because she couldn't possibly find any capacity in her heart to form any positive thoughts about this man. He was horrible; a horrible man who did horrible things. And yet...these simple acts of kindness felt too intimate, almost humanising him. As soon as those thoughts entered her head, she eliminated them entirely. This was the bare fucking minimum, and there she was almost glorifying it just because they were close to screwing. No. She wasn't going down this road, wasn't going to be fooled by him. It was easier to hate him. The bare minimum didn't deserve redemption. Have some class, Lydia. These conflicting thoughts were dizzying, and the deliberate slow passage of time it took to remove said shoes - or death traps, as he called them - was only enabling her to feel more conflicted. The way his fingertips skimmed her skin brought those lustful thoughts back to the surface. What a wreck she was, though she would refuse to admit it. Almost stopped her from hearing his question. Another roll of her eyes. "Perfectly intact, thank you very much," she huffed, back to her stubbornness. As if nothing happened, as if they didn't just have a moment. "And yours? Oh, wait. That question alone implies that you ever had any brain cells to begin with. My bad." Back to normality.

[musebluebird]

One thing Ivan knew about Lydia at this point was that his wife didn't back down from a challenge. She was irreverent. If he bet for something, she was going to redouble the bet. He could tell already - with less than two hours of marriage - that he liked that about her. A lot actually. Lydia seemed willing to defy him whenever she could. Partly that was a breath of fresh air for Ivan who wasn't used to people challenging him back, mainly because people tended to have minimal sense of self-preservation. It wasn't like he was going to hurt Lydia either but she didn't know that and a little part of Ivan was fine with his wife still being a little afraid of him. Hopefully that would prevent her from doing something stupid like running off or plotting with her father. Although Ivan had the idea that if Lydia wanted to do that, nothing could stop her from doing it. Her father didn't seem to be that close to Lydia either, if he had agreed to the marriage in the first place he clearly didn't take his daughter's wishes into account because after meeting her, Ivan was sure that Lydia would have fought tooth and nail not to have to get married. .The father-daughter relationship didn't seem to be going smoothly either because Lydia hadn't been running into her father's arms to do the father-daughter waltz either. Neither was Ivan going to force her if she didn't want to, if she didn't want to spend time with the old man, better for him.

Lydia's perfume invaded Ivan's senses like a summer breeze. It was sweet, it was tropical, it was soothing, and it was exactly how he expected her to smell. Jasmine probably, Ivan would know because his mother loved jasmine, but she also had a woody scent mixed with peach that he found fascinating. The scent was light, enveloping, and smooth. Ivan wanted to sink into her, almost as if she was calling him to it. The feel of her fingers against the skin of his neck nearly broke the last shred of sanity Ivan had. Almost. Because then he thought that even the entire elevator ride to the top wouldn't be enough for everything he wanted to do to her and that he needed to wait. Her eyes were closed, almost as if waiting to see what his next move would be. Like a prey waiting to be eaten. His breath brushed her skin like a small breeze. One of his hands remained resting on top of her head against the elevator wall while his other hand slid slowly tracing her back with his fingers before resting on her lower back, a place he was getting used to have his hand on. Slowly but firmly he draw Lydia a little closer to him if that was possible. He could almost feel Lydia's heart beating against his chest, Ivan was sure his heart would be the same way. Ivan suddenly wondered what Lydia's moans would sound like, and the very thought made his cock automatically get hard. He now he wasn't going to stop thinking about it all damn night. Maybe accompanying her to change her shoes was a bad idea.

His lips slid down her neck in an attempt to caress her gently. Her skin was soft, a little pink and incredibly hot. "I want you." Ivan's finger traced her lower lip slowly. His mouth stopped behind her ear, leaving a small kiss there. "But question is, what do you want, babe?" He replied to her in a whisper letting the tip of his tongue play with her lobe, brushing it gently with his wet mouth almost without being able to avoid the thought of finally tasting her skin somehow. Ivan's sanity was close to breaking, it seemed that Lydia had that effect on him, literally the woman he should be able to have because she was his wife was the only one who seemed to drive him to the brink of madness. She confused him but at the same time he was sure that she could also feel the palpable sexual tension in the environment. That should be normal because they were both married and part of the benefits of marriage should be being able to have sex with your spouse. The problem was that wasn't a normal marriage and they literally hadn't talked about the terms of it before the wedding. Ivan didn't know if she was going to want to run away or if she was clouded by the fear that she might have of him or her father. He didn't want to have her if she was like that. The impression Ivan got was that Lydia also felt that strange connection or sexual tension between them but he didn't want mixed signals. "Tell me something, wife, if I lift that dress, are you going to be wet?" Maybe that was bold, maybe it was too much for the stage where they were, but Ivan firmly believed that they were past that point. He believed that Lydia's character wouldn't have allowed them to move on if it wasn't what she wanted. Jeez, the woman had been talking about slitting his throat less than half an hour before.

Finally, finally, it was nice to be away and have a reprieve from the prying eyes of literally everyone. Attention never usually bothered Lydia too much but being around for plenty of people for an unknown prolonged period of time had only irked her. Especially with the false pleasantries exchanged with a bunch of people who barely knew her. Weddings were boring, let alone being the prime part of one. Being social on this level was boring, mind numbing, and she was just glad to be rid of that for a few minutes. Even if it was a short period of time. Lydia decided she could drag it out for as long as she could. How long did it take for someone to leave the area to change her shoes? She didn’t know, but if she could keep it going long enough to enjoy some time to herself. A bit of peace and quiet. Having Ivan accompany her meant that peace was shattered, inevitably. But funnily enough, she found herself not disappointed by the thought. Was he aggravating? Intolerable? A menace? Yes, yes, and yes. But she’d been dealing with him at her side for the whole day, she could cope with him. And maybe she didn’t want to admit it to herself, but she was at the very least a bit (too) keen to see what road it would lead them. If it meant keeping her father away from her for even longer, then it was worth it. She wouldn’t have been surprised if he tried to follow her out after the brief interaction on the dancefloor. And no way in hell was she about to admit she was grateful for her husband to help her in that regards… but maybe there was a very silent part of her that was. The smallest part of her. So small it was practically invisible.

His suggestion about valuing her intelligence by pushing back caught her attention. An eyebrow quirked in silent question, or more so like disbelief. If it had been anyone else, she may have felt more inclined to believe them. But this was him and frankly, she didn’t want to believe a single word that came out of that man’s mouth. Even if he was her husband now. Clearly, she remained unconvinced and in typical Lydia fashion, she would let that be known. “Don’t tell me that’s a legitimate question – no, I think this ‘push back’ if that is what you want to call it, just another way to try and make me feel stupid,” she replied with a scoff. Honesty was the best policy, right? “And it’s not working. I don’t feel stupid, no matter how much you try and test my patience.” Which was definitely wearing thin. However, that was nothing new for her; she always had a low threshold for patience and an intolerance for bullshit, which was what it felt like he kept feeding her with.

Once they were in the elevator, Lydia turned to face her husband. Did he just…did he just compliment her? In a more offhanded, almost felt backhanded, a weird kind of way to compliment one’s wife. Her head tilted slightly, eyes regarding him with perplexity as though trying to gauge what was running through his mind right in that moment. Why did she even care? Oh, right – she didn’t. That’s what she convinced herself, anyway. “The standards are so high for you, Ivan. I have two working brain cells; you are just flattering me so dearly. How often does that line work on women?” she asked rhetorically, her usual sarcasm laced in her voice, but even she couldn’t help the involuntary hint of a smile that tugged at her lips. Should she be worried, that he was suddenly throwing half-hearted compliments at her? They were alone. They couldn’t stand each other… what was his endgame here?

Then they were completely alone in the elevator, the doors shut, and he was leaning closer to her, and Lydia nearly forgot how to breathe. But the woman did her best to maintain her composure. No matter how unnerved she felt, how strange this all was. Yet the underlying, overwhelming sexual tension between them lingered in the small area. Two could play at that game. In response to his question, she leaned in too. Her lips hovered dangerously close to his for a fraction of a moment; if she moved forward, she could kiss him. But she didn’t. Instead, she tried to steady her breathing, tried to ignore how it caught in her throat. Bringing up one hand to trace his cheek, her touch near feather light as she dragged a finger down.  “No. Not even close, my love,” she murmured against his lips, a crooked smirk twitching as she pulled back. She rested her fingers against the back of his neck, bringing them around to the front and smoothing down his chest. It felt far too intimate, too much yet not enough. “You’ll have to do a lot more than telling me I have two braincells and saying I have a big mouth…” she trailed off, almost coyly. A mouth that wanted to far more than talk in that moment, that was for sure. The urge to cave in altogether was all too tempting, but Lydia resisted. No matter how much her body wanted to do otherwise. She was not going to make this easy for him. The next thing she knew, his nose was brushing against her neck, and she had to pretend as if he wasn’t making her weak at the knees right now. Damn it. If she tilted her head, he could have more access. And oh, god, she wanted to. Lydia let her eyes flutter shut for a moment, to try and get herself together. Breathing him in, trying to ignore the unsteady rise and fall of her chest as she tried to keep her breathing pattern even. Failing miserably. “What do you want, Ivan?” Lydia asked in a feeble attempt to distract herself from him. Her voice somewhat strained, in a breathy tone, and for once it was not filled with complete annoyance. A dangerous yet tantalizing line she was on the verge of crossing…and maybe she just wanted to hear it from him.

[musebluebird]

Ivan couldn't help but smirk slightly when he heard her. That was his girl, always willing to redouble the bet. Wait. His girl?. Jeez. There were many reasons why he couldn't think like that. The main one being that attachment was always a bad idea but especially with Lydia. The woman seemed willing to make him lose all his patience and Ivan could swear she didn't know the word 'calm' by definition. She was like a devastating tsunami ready to destroy everything in her path and Ivan couldn't allow himself to be swept away by 'Hurricane Lydia'. There was no way he could be vulnerable in front of Lydia. Mainly because that would be giving Lydia a lot of power that he was not willing to give up. It was all about power dynamics and in that marriage he expected to be on the positive side of the balance. No matter how idiotic that sounded, he just couldn't open up to someone like that. Allowing himself to be cared about in such a profound way. It was a position he simply couldn't be in if he didn't want to be vulnerable to any enemy. If he allowed to care about Lydia, to really care about her, the problem was going to be protecting her from everything that could happen to her thanks to the fact that she was married to hhim. He was so screwed up that he didn't even want to think about it.

He let out a gruff growl, a little caught off guard by her movement. The brush of her fingers on his pants sent a shock of blood to his cock. Leaving his cock near Lydia was a potential danger - considering that she wanted to cut his head off less than an hour ago - was too bold a move. The desire he had for her was carnal, he needed to bury himself deep in her like he had never needed anything else before. His tongue teased, gently tracing her neck before returning his attention to her earlobe and beginning to nibble it gently. His hand kneaded her ass. He wanted to smashed it, he wanted to leave some marks around her body.

He was about to kneel down to show Lydia exactly how much he wanted her when he heard the sound of the elevator and the doors opened. Dammit. That ride hadn't been long enough for him. He hadn't even had time to show her exactly what he was talking about. To get on his knees to show her - with more than words - that he really wanted her. However, they always had that night and possibly every night after that one to take it easy. Ivan was impatient as hell tho but he was going to have to wait unless he wanted a search party sent out for them. He wanted to take his time with Lydia. A quickie was always exciting but Ivan had a feeling that no quickie was going to be effective enough if he wanted to get Lydia out of his system. "I guess you'll just have to be patient, honey." He scoffed with a wink, pulling away from her to lead her out of the elevator. Now she had to change her shoes and go back to the party. With each step he took, Ivan was more and more certain that maybe he should tell everyone to fuck off and just disappear with his wife.

He gave a small nod to the guard at the room's door. The man returned the nod before beginning to walk down the hallway giving them some privacy. Ivan put someone to watch the door just to be sure. Not because he thought there was any threat or anything of value in there but the last thing he needed was to be have troubles later. He took the swipe card from his suit jacket before opening the door. It's not that he was rude - his mother would have his ass cause he didn't let Lydia walk in first - or didn't trust his own man but he was careful. He still went in taking a quick look around the room before looking at her. Almost as if they hadn't been about to have sex in the elevator and feigning complete insanity about what had just happened between them. Ivan simply took off his jacket and crouched in front of his wife, "Let me help you with those death traps before you break your neck, sweetheart" The whole nickname thing had become fun for him, an easy way to downplay the whole situation. He took all the time in the world to undo the strap on her heels and finally taking out her feet of those death traps, allowing him to brush her skin with his fingertips slowly while doing so "So tell me, how are your two braincells doing, wife?"

This man, her husband, was full of surprises, wasn't he? Lydia wasn't an idiot, had seen firsthand what a dangerous man he was and all that he was capable of. She couldn't stand him; he was an asshole, a man who was too big for his own boots, one who needed knocking down a peg or two. Or ten. Yet he had an answer for every single one of her sarcastic rebuttals, and could at least entertain a stimulating conversation with her. And now, without doing a lot, it felt like every fiber of her being was stimulated - and he'd barely touched her. When this whole arranged marriage thing was thrown at her, she made a vow to herself to make life hell for both Ivan and her father who was far too keen on throwing his daughter at some person she found despicable. Her relationship with her father had been rocky at best, but his insistence on this marriage and how he even seemed to like the idea - for his own twisted benefits most likely, ones of which she would rather choose not to think about - it had only further added nails to the coffin of their relationship. Up until their wedding day, she had fought and fought to get out of it. Hauled any and every venomous, horrible, spiteful word she could at him, accusations galore strewn. But all in all, Lydia got her stubbornness from her father and as much as she did not back down, he didn't either. Now she was here. She didn't want to think of that wretched man any longer. She had no benefit to get out of him... But Ivan? As much as she detested him and would not mind seeing his head on a stick... at least being around him could have some benefits. Even if Lydia could not admit that to herself. Had too much dignity and self-preservation to uphold.

The urge to restrain herself was wearing thin. The scent of his cologne filled her nostrils, was wild and untamed and enticing; it clung to him like a second skin, a reminder of the primal connection that simmered just beneath the surface. The fragrance crackled with an intensity that mirrored smoldering embers, leaving her eager to explore the depths of his allure. Almost too eager. So much for having two brain cells. In the current moment, Lydia felt like she'd lost all grasp on reality. Because what the hell was she doing? Something in the back of her mind, maybe a voice of reason, was trying to tell her she was heading down a path she didn't want to go down. But if that was the case, why was her body responding differently? Why did the other part of her brain want her to say screw self-preservation and throw herself at him, wanted to wrap her legs around his waist and let Ivan have his way with her. But she didn't - because as restless and impatient she was becoming, that was too easy. This felt like a little game between them, like almost a competition to see who would completely cave first. At the moment, it felt like Ivan had the upper hand for now. But Lydia was still determined to try. It would be rude not to. Hearing him utter those three words, how he wanted her, drove her wild, the smug satisfaction sending yet another jolt of electric desire straight to her already aching core. How someone she found so horrible could also be so hot at the same time was simply unfair. And so fucking confusing.

"What I want?" Lydia repeated in almost surprise, the question caught her off guard, and she was unable to help her ragged breathing at the simple actions of well - just about everything he was doing. His breath against her neck, how his finger drawn across her lower lip, the kiss behind her ear. He was capable of asking her what she wanted? That was new. Probably the first time anyone has actually asked her what she wanted since she was thrown into this whole ordeal. Her eyes opened at the question and she glanced to the ceiling as if considering her answer. Lydia wanted many things, where would she begin? Humming thoughtfully, she shrugged. "I want you to prove it," she settled with. "Prove that you want me. Actions speak louder than words, don't they?" she insisted, her voice barely above a whisper as she still tried to remain semi-composed. One could argue that the evidence was already there with the prominent bulge pressed against her, but she wanted to see how far she could push. Feeling a bit daring, perhaps even as bold as he was, she slid her hand lower, in between them, her nimble fingertips 'innocently' stroked against his crotch as she leaned into him. The anticipation burned her insides, and his next question caused her to let out a choked gasp, spurning her on all the more. She pressed her hand firmer against the strained fabric of his trousers, leaning up to press her lips against his ear. Her breath was hot on his skin. "Maybe so, husband. Why don't you slide your hand there and find out for yourself, hmm?" She basically gave him permission. The answer was without a doubt, yes. Already soaking. She could hate someone and still want to have sex with them. Even if they were her spouse.

[musebluebird]

His mother laughed when he told her he was getting married. Genuinely she had laughed even when Ivan told her under which circumstances. The woman who had raised him found his misfortune and inconvenience amusing. Ivan also made her promise not to get close to Lydia before the wedding. God, not even Ivan was going to get close to her before the wedding. He didn't want her mother around her probably overwhelming Lydia and asking questions neither of them couldn't answer.

Ivan actually let out a laugh when she heard her, a real laugh not fake laugh that for anyone would pass for happiness but in reality it was because she had surprised him with her little backlash. Lydia was an interesting little thing, wasn't she? It was a relief to know that at least she was going to keep him at her feet with her mind occupied because if he had to deal with a wife all tearful and sad he was just going to drop her off at her house and go. At least Lydia seemed to have wit and brains, two qualities Ivan valued in anyone but especially now that they were going to be tied to each other for a long time. It was going to be interesting to investigate the chemistry that both could have, especially after the kiss that both had just shared and that Ivan could still feel on his lips.

He leaned down so he could whisper in her ear "I see you have a lot to say, wife" Ivan sneered "If I were you I'd be careful with that tongue, someone might cut it off" Not that he would go around cutting tongues and limbs all days (less than people who really weren't shit) but Lydia didn't know that, that it was just Ivan having black humor. They both walked down the aisle and Ivan was in charge of greeting the people he at least knew, who he didn't simply wonder how many "acquaintances" or "associates" her father could have.

When they both finished walking down the aisle, almost without thinking Ivan pulled hers towards her so he could kiss her again while some guests threw rice. If someone asked him why he had done that when it wasn't necessary, he wouldn't quite know what to answer to that. Ivan had simply had the need to try her lips again to find out if indeed he had been delirious or if Lydia's lips felt almost like touching the sky with his hands. In fact, he wasn't wrong. A heat invaded him slowly burning him from the inside out, suddenly, he wanted to explore a little more the idea of having a little wife.

This was a complete farce. Up until a few days ago, Lydia had made that loud and clear, trying to do everything she could to get out of this little...arrangement. It wasn’t fair. She had been traumatised by a murder unfolding right in front of her and she was paying the price for being a mere witness. Okay, so traumatised may have been a tad melodramatic — but it would be a lie to say it had not affected her even slightly. Compartmentalising was something she mastered in her line of work, having to deal with death on the daily. However, there was a colossal difference between witnessing someone die and dealing with someone who was already dead. Everything that happened after was a blur. Now suddenly, she found herself marrying a man she had no love for, Ivan, the perpetrator of said murder all to ensure her silence. The pressure looming over, courtesy of her notorious father.

Whatever he said, went. Being his daughter never granted her many perks. But she wasn't quite as innocent as she made herself out to be either. When she first accidentally discovered her father's crimes via work, she concealed evidence, and altered test results in a blind panic. She confronted him for answers and that's how she got roped into his shenanigans. Because she was 'ready.' And it made her an asset. To his credit, he never pestered her too much. For the most part, she could carry on as normal. So what if she turned a blind eye every now and then, slightly adjusted someone's cause of death, changed her findings, or tip him/his associates off when the cops may be getting close to a case that might warrant his attention? Lydia had gotten away with it, nobody ever suspected a thing. Little white lies, that's all they were. Until the little white lies became a bit too big for her. And now she was here.

At least she got to choose her dress. That was the one condition she gave before she agreed because she would rather die than be forced to wear the ugliest fucking puffy dress to walk down the aisle in. The whole endeavor was annoying, and what comforted her a little was how Ivan seemed less than impressed by the whole thing too. Good. She played her part to the beat, the doting wife-to-be. When she thought about it, he was actually rather quite attractive. And a good kisser, too, she mused as the boring priest finally stopped talking. Then...he had to open his mouth and ruin the moment as they pulled back, reminding her how much she resented everything. "And you should speak less," she retorted quietly, almost immediately. She plastered a small smile on her lips, a forced one that could easily be played off as nervousness to the guests. Reluctantly, she linked her arm around his, leaning in so she could whisper to him, "I dislike you a little less when you don't speak." Agreeing to marriage didn't mean she had to like him. Lydia's always been a stubborn force to be reckoned with. Retreating then, she pulled back with a laugh as though she told a funny joke, looping her arm around tighter around his. "Shall we then, my beloved husband?" Sarcasm dripped from her voice, said in a sickeningly sweet tone that could easily mislead others as being sincere... even if she was anything but.

[musebluebird]

It was no secret that he wasn't the biggest fan of Lydia's father. Ivan respected the man but still there was something about him that gave him a bad feeling. Maybe it was him being cautious like he always had but partly Lydia not being excited about dancing with him on their wedding day was a sign. He looked at her out of the corner of his eye. Lydia was tense and nervous to say the least. He didn't bother to investigate the relationship between his now wife and her father but now Ivan thought that maybe he should dig a little more there. He had focused on knowing what role her half-siblings played in her family but he still didn't know how strong the bond was between Lydia and her father. At the end of the day all he needed to know was if the time came to whom she was going to be loyal if he had to choose sides with her. Not that Ivan thought that moment would come but logically he would expect her to be loyal to her family. As much as he threatened her, it was clear that Lydia was not the kind of girl who would duck her head under a threat. Threatening Lydia would get him nowhere. He should find another way to make sure his wife wasn't going to double cross him. He would never trust her easily, it just wasn't something Ivan would do. Neither was Ivan thinking of telling her her darkest secrets either but for now he should be tiptoeing around her.

Ivan had been about to suggest that maybe they should go find her shoes just so they could have Lydia alone for a moment. Now that she'd suggested it, he didn't need to say anything about her or carry her out there. The idea of being alone with her was more than tempting, running his fingers over her skin… or with his mouth "Let's go then, princess" He placed a hand on her lower back to guide her out of the room. Ivan's proud ass would never allow him to admit that he was looking to spend time alone with his wife so in his head he pretended that her excuse was to make sure she didn't run off. Although it didn't really matter if she did run, eventually Ivan would find her and bring her back. There was no way out of that marriage for her and Ivan thought she knew that very well anyway. Still, he didn't fully trust Lydia and had his reservations about her. Nothing told her that she wouldn't run away at any moment with the help of her father.

"By the way, don't you think that this whole push back isn't valuing your intelligence?" Ivan retorted walking with her out of the room down the hall to the elevator. The elevator doors opened and they entered. "The fact that you are smart is more of a blessing than a curse, Lydia, I could never bare a wife without a single working brain cell, at least you have two" In some weird and twisted way that was a compliment though maybe It was phrased a bit strange. The fact that Lydia had more than two synapsing neurons could be a threat, after all she could plan something -although Ivan could see a plot a mile away- but it also meant that she could be more cunning than she seemed. At the same time Ivan didn't think he could have been with someone who didn't present him with a challenge and Lydia? Lydia was definitely a challenge. She seemed always ready to throw back whatever he threw at her.

Ivan placed his hand on her head leaning a little closer to her as the elevator doors closed. "Enough to keep me on my toes with that big mouth of yours." He winked at her in an attempt to dismiss her importance. what he had just said. Was that flirting? Low-key yes but not because he needed to win over his wife but because it was fun to play cat and mouse with her. He found all that teasing more than interesting "Is that enough appreciation of your intelligence for you, angel?" He asked leaning a little closer to her. His breath brushed her almost like a caress. Her perfume invaded her senses, he liked the way she smelled, almost sweet. He allowed himself to gently inhale her scent before brushing the tip of her nose against the skin of her neck. That was all a bit of a low move by Ivan to make her a little nervous but partly he wanted to see what her wife was doing now that they were alone. Although Ivan didn't think she would back down, he wanted to try and see what she would do now there was no one around who could interrupt them. Ivan simply needed to get Lydia out of his system and when he did he could feel forward. He told himself that all he had for her was mere curiosity. Curious to know how she taste, how she felt. Something inside him stirred in anticipation.

"Depends. Have you finished belittling me and mocking every single word that comes out of my mouth?" Lydia snapped back, flashing him a sour glare. Hard to keep up pretenses of happiness when he was winding her up, driving her insane - in more ways than one, clearly but at that moment she was on the brink of ripping his head off. She wasn't having a fucking tantrum; he was just being a dick. Maybe she had a touch of youngest child syndrome, forever being shielded away from the hardest parts of life, family feeling the need to protect her from life. A life where she felt the need to prove she could handle stuff. To prove she was capable. She may have been lucky in the sense to be the only one of her siblings to know their father - though considering her situation now, it probably would've been better for her if she hadn't. The last thing she wanted to do was to explode in front of everyone, not on their wedding day, not in front of all these people - though honestly, she couldn't care less what these people thought. They knew nothing. No matter how much they thought they did.

Blah, blah, blah, Lydia thought to herself, trying to stifle the urge to roll her eyes. Or a yawn. Either one floated her boat, she wasn’t fussy. Honestly, she could not give a flying monkey about the streets. Her threat had been a joke, a bad one at that probably. It was meant to be something to amuse herself but of course, he had to get all serious and manage to ruin her imagination, too. She had no real interest in them, would rather go running in the other direction rather than getting involved. It had been a joke. And so, she didn’t care for whatever he said, no matter how right he may have been – nor did she even want to admit that he had a point – because that would mean letting him win, and she couldn’t have that. Would do anything except from admitting defeat. “In that case, I suppose it’s a good job I don’t actually have any intention of following through with it,” Lydia said in a voice that was overly, sickeningly sweet. A smile plastered across her face to reinforce it.

When Ivan basically confirmed her suspicions, that if she were a man, she wouldn’t be standing there living and breathing now, she scoffed. She already knew that, of course she did – she wasn’t a complete idiot. And she couldn’t help the way she pulled a face which seemed to gradually become more and more unimpressed (as if she hadn’t reached that limit already) with every pet name he threw at her. A bit overkill, but she assumed it was because he knew he would get on her nerves. He already got on every single last one of them. Was she supposed to be grateful? Because she wasn’t and she never would enable him the satisfaction of such thing. “If you’re waiting a thank you, you’ll be waiting a long time. Also, you should know: your pet names are becoming increasingly worse, darling.”  A brief pause. “And there are things far worse than death.” Lydia was not frightened of death, per se.  In fact, she had grown desensitised to it in a sense. Working with death on a daily basis, she had no other choice but to find a way to cope. Compartmentalise and detach herself from the horrors she subjected herself to. Having saw what she did that landed her in her current situation was different though; seeing someone after they died was different than watching the brutal act that ended their lives, watching their final moments unfold. In the end, she kind of found comfort in the fact that in death, they all ended up the same way, no matter what you did in life. The after part of death was pretty much the same for nearly everyone.  That being said, she wasn’t trying to actively meet her demise any earlier than she was supposed to. So, if that meant being careful then she would do her best. As for Ivan valuing her intelligence more than she thought? Now that was a new one. Could he even be capable of valuing anything of her? Not that she wanted to prove herself to him, she couldn’t care less what he thought of her. And yet still… “If you value my intelligence, you should start acting like it. Just saying.”

Lydia genuinely thought that Ivan would leave her to it when her dad approached. It would have been a good reason to be free of her for a bit for the first time all day. But he… he surprised her. Her husband stayed, even had the guts to tell her father no – though she was quite capable of doing that herself, to say the least. His hand on her waist again had her once again simultaneously wanting to shove him off and needing him closer and wanting them to have a moment alone so she could explore what else he could do with those hands. Preferably under her dress, this time. Okay, Lydia. Back up a bit. Watching the exchange take place between her husband and her father, a casual smirk threatened to twitch at her lips when her dad was told no, and the filthy look he gave Ivan as they moved away. She bit the inner corner of her cheek in an attempt to restrain that smirk from flourishing though, not until they were away from him. Clearly, he didn’t like to be told no, wasn’t used to it even, which she found more than entertaining. “Now, you should consider not telling me what to do,” Lydia murmured back in response. “I’m not hungry, though I wasn’t completely lying about my feet, as much as I like annoying and avoiding my father. These shoes are starting to hurt me. I think I’m going to go and put something more comfortable. Especially if we’ve still got a few hours of this left,” she admitted with a soft sigh. “It’s up to you if you want to come with me or not.” She supposed she could try and make a clean getaway if he didn’t… though what would be the point now? It was a bit too late to make a beeline for an exit now. “I’ll behave.”

[musebluebird]

"Poor little thing, are you done with this tantrum, princess?" It was hard for him to feel any kind of compassion or empathy for her considering that Lydia seemed to have had everything growing up. At least money, which made things incredibly easier. Ivan doubted that she knew what it was like to work hard for anything. It's not that he underestimated Lydia's abilities but she didn't know the need, she could never do it. Ivan had had to fight tooth and nail for everything he had achieved while Lydia had had her life served on a silver platter. He doubted that she could ever fully understand the path Ivan had traveled to be where she was. Full of blood, sweat and tears. Full of decisions, some terrible, some good, some questionable, but decisions nonetheless.

"People still runs by a code, everyone does them but the streets usually have their own, angel" It didn't matter how much they could bribe someone. There was something Ivan had earned: reputation and respect. Most of the people willing to do that kind of work had more respect for Ivan or owed him some favor for which they would either reject the job or let him know so he could be aware. Everyone had their price, Lydia was right about that, but even so, and although he was aware of that, Ivan knew that he had the majority in favor. A reputation was more important most of the times and Ivan had a big one.

"First of all, if you were a man and you had been there that night, you wouldn't be here talking to me today, honey" He hoped she understood between the lines. If she had been a man, she would be dead without a doubt and no matter who her father was. In fact, Ivan was increasingly skeptical that she knew that her father had been more willing to offer her in marriage than he was to marry her. Yes, the benefit that she couldn't talk about anything if they were married but her father had almost wanted to get rid of Lydia. "Second, if you were a man and you were threatening me, you wouldn't be here talking to me either, angel" Neither would he be as amused by her threat or sympathetic to her. Ivan would probably have threatened her back if she was a guy and maybe he would have broken some of her bones for having the audacity to threaten him like that "Third, you being a girl is working in your favor anyway, chickpea" And against him because if she moved her cute little ass like that again he was going to fuck her regardless of all that party around them "And fourth, I value your intelligence more than you think, sweet baby" He had no problem openly admitting that she had brain and one definitely bigger than his For starters, there was no way she wouldn't have it because of the way she quickly knew what to reply to his taunts and second, he'd done the research on her before her and she was fucking smart even in her classes in college.

Ivan noticed as soon as her father approached them because she automatically tensed up and stopped dancing. He noticed that clearly Lydia didn't want to go with her father. He could respect that and also now that they were officially married, her father couldn't force her to do anything she didn't want "I'm sorry Mr. Collins but Lydia was just telling me how her feet and head hurt, I think who needs to eat something, after all, we don't want the bride to faint, right?" He retorted before sliding a hand around Lydia's waist tightening his grip on her. His thumb stroked her waist over her dress in a reassuring gesture "We don't want that, definitely not but we must dance" Her father didn't seem happy there but Ivan didn't give a damn, if Lydia didn't want to go then He wasn't going to force her to leave "Maybe later, Mr.Collins, I'm going to take Lydia to sit down for a while," he added before slowly leading her away from the dance floor and her father "Now you should consider eating something and maybe pretend that your feet hurt, I prefer not to have your father as an enemy on the same day of our wedding" He leaned down to whisper into her ear with the sweetest smile he could muster.

The comment regarding her father hit a nerve but Lydia attempted to do what she normally did: shove it to one side, bury it, never to be disturbed again. The implication that she was anything like him made her blood boil, made her feel sick to her stomach. "I am nothing like him if that is what you are insinuating," she protested adamantly through gritted teeth. "And I never will be either, though he seems to think I'm his lackey at times when I can't avoid him. And for the record, you best not get any ideas either." Maybe she got her wits from him, and maybe she did share some of his facial features - damn genetics - but she liked to distance herself as far away from him as she could. "Unlike you and unlike him, I had no choice. I want nothing to do with this...this world. I got dragged into it. My choice was taken away from me." The only reason she ever allowed him into her life was because of her mother's persuasion. She thought it was important to have both parents in her daughter's life before she passed. Even back then, she had been a stubborn child. If he hadn't bothered for the first god knows how many years of her life then why should she then? But her mom coaxed her with the promise of ice cream and a trip to the bookstore and that was good enough. Oh, what she would've done to rewind time back to that moment, to remain obstinate and say no. How different would her life be now if she remained on the stubborn path? Probably not bound to a loveless marriage in return for her silence, that was for sure.

Naive. Hilarious. Truly hilarious. Another scoff, another eye roll. "Everyone seems to think that about me until I prove them wrong. And I always prove them wrong. You men are all the same." Not that threatening to plot someone's murder was ever one of those things, but still her point stood. If she had been a man, would Ivan have taken her more seriously? She wondered. Then again, if she'd been a man then would they have even married? What would've been the alternative option? Actually, no - she definitely did not want to think about that. "Ah, you see, I don't think you'd be telling me this, warning me off per se, if there wasn't a single part of you that was at least a little worried. Even if it's 0.001%." Or maybe she was just completely delusional. "You may know people. But knowing people does not always necessarily mean they'll be on your side. People jump ship, and forge new alliances. All they need is the right motivation or the right price when you find their weaknesses." Or at least, that's what she assumed. That's what made sense to her. It really was just talk, probably mostly bullshit she probably heard her father spouting off to someone - or Lydia herself, she couldn't remember - that she happened to pick up on. She didn't understand and she didn't want to either. But it was something she thought about, anything to get her through this day in all honesty.

She could've sworn she felt Ivan tense up slightly at her ministrations. Even when she hadn't been looking at him, it was like she felt it, him adjusting himself accordingly. His breath, hot in her ear, maybe even sounding huskier than before, only spurned her on more. A wicked smirk crossed her lips, rather pleased with herself. "Being careful is overrated," she responded cheekily. "All I've ever been is careful, it's a bit boring. And look where it's gotten me," Lydia mused with feigned innocence, trying to push out all thoughts of him and ignore them despite her antics, trying to ignore the ache between her legs yearning to just release the tension and pent-up frustrations. How was it possible to hate someone more than you hate most people and still want to fuck them? The only thing she knew at that moment was that if he didn't sort her out, she would do it herself. "That would give them something else to talk about, wouldn't it?" Was she...was she joking? Because why was she genuinely starting to consider doing that? Perhaps it was the song finally drawing to a close and she was ready to do something other than dance, as the music continued to play with some of the guests heading to the dancefloor.

Or maybe it was the sight of her father from the corner of her eye, approaching the newlyweds. Lydia couldn't even force the smile on her face as she glared at the man she'd avoided all day. "Mind if I steal my daughter away for one dance?" the other man asked coolly. The question wasn't even a question, it sounded more like an instruction or command. The words 'mind if I' sounded more like 'I want to and I will.' A look of disdain on her face as she shot her husband a look that practically screamed 'help.' Hadn't she suffered enough at the hands of both of these men? "Actually..." Lydia trailed off, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear, fully ready to fake the faint she was vehemently against only a few moments prior. With or without Ivan's help. "I think I'm all danced out for one day. It's been a long day..." she trailed off, pretending to sound remotely apologetic even if she wasn't in the slightest.

[musebluebird]

Ivan didn't mind being insufferable. At least his brain wasn't going to atrophy from boredom and lack of stimulation. Most people didn't have the intellectual level required to respond to sarcasm and irony so quickly but Lydia always seemed to find a way to return to him all the missiles he threw at her "Maybe you want to look at yourself in the mirror, sweetheart, your father is cut by the same knife," Ivan replied as calmly as possible. In any case, the money that paid for Lydia's education, to name something, was dirtier than Ivan's money was. Mainly considering that Ivan's business was mostly legal for him. Okay, underground fighting probably wasn't the most legal thing in the world but nightclubs were solid. Ivan couldn't leave the clandestine fights though because otherwise he would end up fighting with anyone like a drunk in a bar. He needed to decompress and specially having sex around wouldn't be as easier as it used to be.

He clicked his tongue "Naive would be the word I was looking for" He mocked with all the intention that she knew how innocent her death threat sounded. She was almost adorable in Ivan's books. By no means did he underestimate Lydia's intelligence, he knew she was smart and cunning but there was no way she could plan something against him and Ivan wouldn't find out about it. He didn't think she would do something like that but if she did, not even with her father help she could do it without him seeing it coming from a mile away. "Good luck finding someone willing to help you with that, honey" He replied wondering if it was going to be a long time before they could finish moving on the dance floor and they could sit down. "Let me give you some free inside information." It wasn't a threat, It could rather be a warning, if she wanted to try, Ivan was going to have a lot of fun watching her do it "Friendly warning, my love, I grew up in the streets, that means that everyone knows me and I know everyone and if I don't know someone, someone I know will know" No hitman would take a job like that. There were certain street codes that Ivan believed Lydia would never understand, not out of understatement, but because she hadn't grown up living by them.

When he saw her move, Ivan opened his mouth to ask what the hell she was doing. He could feel her ass against his cock. As if he wasn't about to die of a serious case of blue balls, Lydia had the audacity to sway so that her butt brushed against his cock. Ivan didn't think she was doing it with that intention but still she had to know that he was just a man after all. Ivan did his best to keep his cock from seizing up and not looking like a teenager in the middle of their wedding before leaning down to brush his lips against her ear. "Be careful, you're playing with fire, sweetheart," he muttered under his breath, fully meaning to let her know that he knew exactly what was going through her greedy little mind. At that precise moment, Ivan strongly considered loading her onto his shoulder and carrying her away from there just to fuck her brain out of her. He could almost imagine her tightening around him. Ivan's mind was going places he shouldn't go. He definitely shouldn't be thinking about how sex with his wife would feel like. How warm she would be, how wet she would feel. Damn. He was going to need a cold shower after all that show was done. Ivan cleared his throat "Well, if you fake passing out the main rumor will be that I got you pregnant before the wedding so I wouldn't be that far from 'kids' in people's minds" He replied like they didn't just have a moment. Yeah, back to the taunting, he could handle the taunting but he couldn't handle his wife's ass against his cock.

"I am not ashamed and I am not a fool either, so watch your mouth.." The words spewed out automatically, without even a second for an additional comment. Though she knew her threat was an empty one at that, especially when thrown at Ivan - it felt good to do it. For fuck sake. Did he really need an answer to match everything Lydia threw at him? If she wasn't so pissed off, she'd be impressed; it wasn't every day she met someone who could keep up with her, who gave as good as she got. Did it really need to be him, though? Of all goddamn people. Everything she did seemed to be his source of entertainment and it made her want to scream. It was a miracle, really, that she'd managed to keep herself so composed for now. "Are you thick? What do you think? Be conveniently sick. I can be a good actress, you know." At least she was honest. The masochist comment made genuinely earned a laugh from her though. "The only masochist here is you, my dear. You ought to look in the mirror. What else do you describe someone who offs another person and arranges to marry the traumatised, scarred bystander in the hopes she'll keep her mouth shut, hm? Bit rich coming from you." The way he almost always added a term of endearment at the end of most sentences solidified her theory that he was purposely pissing her off. Ivan really was insufferable, wasn't he? Normally, she could appreciate someone who bantered back and forth with her, put them in her place and remind her that her name was Lydia, not sweetheart or princess or whatever other stupid fucking word that came from his mouth. She didn't exactly have a choice here though, when it was all coming from her husband. About to go off on another tangent, it was safe to say he caught her completely off guard with the mention of children. Our children. Now she was genuinely feeling nauseous, colour draining from her face. "I don't and won't have to think that far ahead because our children will never exist," she stated curtly. "If you think for a second I am going to have children with one of the most depraved, diabolical men I know then you can think again." Having children never was an option for Lydia; she was too dedicated to her work, too ambitious and kids would simply get in the way of that. The world was a shitty enough place to be without dragging some innocent souls to be corrupted by darkness. Not a chance. Over her dead body. She didn't care whether he was kidding or not, that was a resounding no. And the thought of enduring the pain of childbirth was enough to put her off anyway.

As much as she hated to admit it, she had prepared herself for that sort of reaction from her husband. "What do you mean 'kind of?'" she muttered under her breath. Definitely missing the important facts then, more offended that he called her thoughts of attempting strangulation 'kind of cute'. What did it fucking matter anyway? Like she ever wanted to know anything he thought of her. A little. "You shouldn't be so cocky, you'll meet your match one day. Could be me; I could quite easily make your death look like an accident if I wanted to. You wouldn't see it coming. With access to the right resources, the right people, anything's possible," she said playfully, as if she was merely joking. Although if she really wanted to waste the energy, it was feasible. With her knowledge and skills as a forensic pathologist, the career she lived and breathed, it wasn't completely out of the realm of possibility. It would take meticulous time to plan, a lot of energy and pretenses to keep up with and honestly? Lydia couldn't be bothered. It was fun to ponder over it though. But that would mean she was as bad as he was, and that simply was not true. And if she really had been considering it, she wouldn't explicitly unravel her plans. But maybe it would push his buttons, either way, she was half intrigued to see his reaction. Would he go berserk? Would he laugh in her face? It was easy to underestimate her.

Yet it didn't stop the lingering tension festering between the two. Curiosity had gotten the better of Lydia, ever so slightly, and she couldn't help her mind drifting to the what-ifs... and she had an idea. Swiftly turning around in time to the music so her back was facing him, still moving along to the music, she took his hands and pulled them towards her around the front, settling her own on top. And now, if she just leaned back a little, and just positioned herself correctly... If Ivan asked what she was doing, she would simply tell him she got fed up of looking at his stupid face. Pretend to be completely innocent if she was lowkey trying to push the boundary a little, test the waters with not-so-subtle teasing. Though to everyone else, they looked like a typical couple of newlyweds who couldn't keep their hands off of each other. "Who says we have to stay? It's supposed to be our wedding, after all...we should go whenever we want..." she mused, humming thoughtfully as she slowly swayed away with the music. And her mind was wandering again... wondered if he was capable of putting those large hands to good use. It only made her restless. Lingering for a moment before she turned back to face him, her fingers still entwined with his, she tried to hide the small smirk from curving her lips. "Oh, you'd like that, wouldn't you?" she said coyly. "And it wouldn't be completely fake - I still feel queasy from you mentioning kids," she murmured, actually genuinely entertaining the thought, contemplating the suggestion. Our bed should have weirded her out, should have repulsed her but part of her wanted to just throw her morals out of the window just to have her way. To put these thoughts to bed. What night is better than her wedding night? It would be just sex - it didn't mean anything. Still, her stubbornness won out for a little bit longer. It would pain her to give in to him, to let Ivan win. "But hmm, no, I think I'm alright waiting it out a little longer. I can't be bothered by the hassle of the theatrics or having you carry me anywhere." Again with playing hard to get.

[musebluebird]

"There's no need to be ashamed, you need to learn not to make a fool of yourself in public, sweetheart." The fight she put up was even more fun for him. Lydia was willing to try - a long shot - to kill him in the middle of the dance floor on their wedding day. Ivan's desire to fuck his wife went beyond how good she looked in that dress or how attractive she looked with her hair up like that, he liked the challenge that her mouth meant. Lydia didn't mince words and was willing to cut off his penis as long as he stopped talking. Instead of finding it insulting or threatening, he found it hilarious "What are you going to do when we have a fancy party again then? Are you a masochist or something? I can always catch you if you fall tho, sweetheart, don't worry" He winked at her playfully. Ivan had every intention of calling her by all the pet names that could exist and that he could think of. He found it particularly amusing. He mocked with all the intention of getting her out of her mind. Not that he was going to let her hit her head on the floor because she couldn't keep her balance and of course she technically didn't need the classes, but Ivan was capable of leaving her a valid certificate for dance classes tomorrow just to see her explode. of fury "What do you plan to do on our children's birthdays if you don't know how to dance?" He scoffed. The remote possibility of ever having children never crossed his mind, much less had he even thought about having children with Lydia. The line of work was too dangerous to even have a wife let alone children where the responsibility was to keep them safe. Also, he was almost sure they didn't need to dance in their non-existence kids' birthdays.

"The fact that you think you could even get close enough to me to strangle me is hilarious and kind of cute, princess." No matter how fast Lydia thought she was, Ivan would see her coming from a mile away. It was nothing against her or her possible abilities but first, he always had his guard up and second, even though they could sleep in the same bed, Ivan always had one eye open. Above all things, with a marriage in those circumstances, he knew better than to trust her, especially her father. It didn't matter that Ivan was now married to his daughter. They might be allies but the man would take what he could from Ivan if the opportunity presented itself.

Ivan gently turned her around before drawing her back to him. Damn. Her hair's smell was as intense as her perfume. At least she seemed to be subconsciously getting carried away by him, not that he was an expert in dancing but at least he could pretend a little more than sway to the rhythm of the music "I don't think we can leave for the next two or three hours" He replied softly when he put his hand on her waist again. Inside him, Ivan wished they could get out of there. He could only think of the things he would do if he put his hands on his wife at that moment where his mind could only think about her. Ivan suddenly wondered if her skin was as smooth as it seemed. "Though you can always fake a faint if you want, my beautiful wife, I promise I'll carry you back to our bedroom." Ivan knew exactly how dirty those words sounded from his lips but he didn't care. In part he wanted Lydia to imagine—as much as he was doing— how sex between them would be like. He wanted her to think about it as much as he was, because if she was also thinking about it and going crazy about it, Ivan wasn't going to be the only one who lost his mind in that marriage.

Oh, there were many, many things Lydia wanted to do at that moment. One of them was to wipe that stupid fucking smarmy smile off of that man's face. A wave of satisfaction touched her though, just barely, feather-light even - she made him smile. Then she came to her senses: no. It was only to deliberately taunt her. Had to be. She was sure. Literally, everything he did was to torment her, or so she assumed. It frustrated her and made her want to bang her head against a brick wall. Or more specifically, to bang him, though that was still debatable and up in the air. Having thoughts about screwing your spouse shouldn't be all that complicated if you were a normal couple. But nothing about Lydia and Ivan's marriage was remotely normal in the slightest; hence why it was so confusing.

Going back to those thoughts - it helped her get through this whole ordeal - what was it to be? Many options sprang to mind. She could continue on with her not-so-subtle threat to dig her heels into those shoes of his. Or, she could purposely trip herself up, and drag him down with her. Or, if she happened to gently, accidentally went to sweep the leg, that could work too. Even better if she took Ivan down by kicking him in the balls - now that would be satisfying. But given the situation, and the fact she imagined he probably had much faster reflexes or could probably tell she was up to no good, he'd probably stop her. Maybe. It was still tempting, though. Even brought a half-satisfied smirk to her lips. Amazing how a simple thought could be enough.

Until, as usual, Ivan spoke. Something about the way he called her beautiful had her stomach doing somersaults which only infuriated her even more. She chose to ignore that part, having concluded it was all part of demonstrating affection to his wife, as 'normal' as normal should be. Seething. Lydia was seething. Her nostrils flared, and jaw clenched, but she couldn't escape the electric pulse that coursed through her when his breath, warm and infuriatingly enticing, grazed the shell of her ear. "Go fuck yourself," she murmured back in response, yet another one of her false smiles etched on her face so as not to give the wrong impression to the onlookers. "You can shove those dance lessons up your ass. What makes you think I'm going to need them, anyway? This is the first and only time I will ever need to be dancing with you." Lydia rolled her eyes, resenting how easy it was for Ivan to get under her skin and piss her off. It was then, she realised, he probably had only said that to get a rise out of her. It was working. Damn it. "But I suppose I can return the favour: for you, my darling husband, my wedding gift to you and my first act of love as your wife will be the self-sacrificial act of not trying to strangle you today."

It wasn't even a surprise that he could grind her gears so easily. At the best of times, Lydia had a short fuse and an intolerance for other people's bullshit. It was other's people's bullshit that landed her there in the first place. Yet... there was a part of her that just wanted to let herself go, enjoy the moment. It was her wedding, after all, she may as well attempt to make the most of it. She even let out a quiet laugh as she twirled around, letting herself be. Just for a while. Just for now. It was easier when neither of them spoke, her heart hammering as she maintained eye contact with him. Part of her, as much as she tried to deny it to herself, was curious about him. Wanted to know how he ended up this way, like he was a puzzle to figure out. Something about him intrigued her, and she didn't want to know why. Lydia leaned into him, strangely liking the feeling of having him so close to her. Not close enou--nope. Scrap that. She wasn't heading down that road again. "So, when do you suppose we can get out of here?" she asked quietly, half joking when she said it. Surely there wasn't much more of this to go, right? Lydia knew the connotations her question could have implied, and honestly? She was unbothered, left that thought hanging in the air, more interested to see Ivan's reaction.

[musebluebird]

The brush of her fingers against his lips sent a chill down his spine. Something tickled inside him, more specifically, something tickled on his cock. Damn. How long could it take to drain all those people so that he could have a moment alone with Lydia to fuck her brain out against the wall? He was going to have to suck it up before he could even think about having a second alone with his wife. Especially since people seemed particularly excited to greet and congratulate them for their marriage.

His hand did not move from her lower back. It froze there with an iron grip. When it came the time to have their first dance as husband and wife, he was internally debating whether he shouldn't create a distraction so they could get away from there. However, he couldn't prevent a mischievous smile from forming on his lips when he heard her. Ivan found her threat hilarious. It was the funniest thing he'd heard all day, for sure. Although it could be painful if she step on him in those shoes. Ivan didn't think either of them was on the floor more than necessary and they could always just sway slowly.

"Don't worry, my beautiful wife, I won't let you make a fool of yourself" He murmured with a mischievous smile, leaning in to speak in her ear. Although it wasn't necessary, Ivan brushed his lips against her ear just for the pleasure of being able to touch her in a more intimate way "And my first act of love as a husband and wedding gift will be to gift you some dance classes" He didn't care that she knew dance or not but he would do it if that made Lydia explode with rage just for the fun of being able to fight her "Just tell me later if you prefer waltz or salsa" Ivan gave her a wink. Suddenly, his mind drifted to the idea of another man laying hands on her. His wife. His mother would kill him if she found out he was treating a woman like an object—she'd say she raised him better than that—but the mere thought of another guy laying his hands on Lydia made Ivan want to play target shooting. The very idea of other men touching her so intimately displeased him exceedingly. None of it made sense though. Until less than two hours ago, Ivan's idea was to lock her up in some property where he could guarantee a minimum of security for her and throw the key into the sea so he didn't have to deal with her at all. Now he actually wanted to deal with Lydia.

He gave her a little spin before pulling her back to him. For as long as he could, Ivan held eye contact with her. Lydia was going to be a fun thing to figure out and for the first time, Ivan allowed himself to have expectations about this marriage. He hoped it would not only be fun but mentally stimulating and Lydia? Lydia seemed like a challenge and there was nothing he liked more than a good challenge. His hand remained on her lower back not wanting to move from there and his other hand intertwined with hers, allowing his fingertips to brush against her skin. He allowed himself to rest his chin on the top of her head as they continued to sway to the music. Her hair smelled good, so good, like green apples, smelled almost as good as her lips tasted, though Ivan didn't think anything could top the taste of her lips against his.

Lydia’s brain kept circling around that one moment – the way their lips met in that intoxicating kiss. A maddening moment, the way Ivan kissed her felt unlike any other, as if his lips held a secret language of passion. It ignited a fire within her, a longing that spread through her like wildfire and left her body feeling restless when they broke off. In the depths of her mind, she couldn’t help but wonder what could have transpired had they found themselves alone, far from the prying eyes of the guests, envisioning his hands venturing to places untouched and blocked by that stupid wedding dress. The mere thought sent shivers down her spine.

Remember why you're here, the niggling voice of reason and logic in the back of her head reminded her and reality struck her the minute they pulled away from each other. There was a brief moment, a flicker, her breath caught in her throat as he brushed her hair from her face. Was it necessary? It was...strange. Made her feel more self conscious, more self aware of their surroundings. Though that did not stop her from reaching up, her thumb brushing against his mouth, an unconscious effort to wipe away the lipstick she must have transferred to him in that moment.

Then it was back to reality. Lydia tried not to think too much of it. Carry on as normal. What was even normal? This whole situation was anything but normal. And he wasn't any ordinary man, let alone a man she remotely loved. She knew full well what Ivan was capable off, and that simultaneously repulsed her, pissed her off beyond anything she could say and she reminded herself of that, of why she was here in the first place. And yet fuelled her with another tangled mess of complicated feelings. For now she put those thoughts to bed, distracting herself with interacting with guests. Lydia wished her older siblings were there but she knew if she invited them, they would have saw right through the façade. They knew her better than she knew herself, and that would be dangling her weakness in front of the faces of these people. Especially her father and his associates. It was how she was persuaded in participating in this whole goddamn marriage. The three of them shared a mother but not a father, but that had never been of importance, but she knew her dad would exploit that if she stepped out of line. It gave her further motivation to be a bitch and maintain stubbornness when she didn't need to pretend. Just a few more hours...

Along came the newlyweds' first dance. Great. Terrific. Lydia definitely did not do dancing. Why was this even fucking necessary? Nevertheless, she obliged. The closeness returned and suddenly it felt like all of her senses were heightened. She forced herself to look up at him, gently placing her hands against her husband's shoulders. "I hope you're wearing sturdy shoes," she muttered, "Because I'm not a much of a dancer, and I would hate to crush your toes by 'accidentally' stepping on your toes. Especially in these heels." Heels which she had every intention of taking off at the first opportunity. The word 'accidentally' emphasised to indicate sarcastic undertones - typical Lydia style.

[musebluebird]

Ivan had a feeling that he was going to have a lot of fun with his new wife. At least the woman was going to keep his brain entertained and not bored to death of his mind every time he saw her. Lydia seemed to have no mincing words and an acid humor full of sarcasm. Her sarcasm was going to keep Ivan's brain a little active around her. Weirdly, he liked that idea.

Suddenly, Ivan had the urge to push her against the wall with the sole purpose of being able to continue kissing her. Maybe something else. Maybe he needed more. However, he didn't have a wall that close and they weren't alone. Unfortunately. Because if they were, nothing would stop him from 'exploring' a little more about Lydia. As slimy as it could sound, he wanted to run her body with his hands, explore her a little more. It was one of those rare times when Ivan was genuinely intrigued, his wife, little thing, had him trying to figure her out. He wanted to know more about her, even though before they were married, in his head, Ivan had vowed to keep a healthy distance once they were husband and wife. He had never wanted so much for all that reception to end quickly so they could get out of there.

The way her warm lips felt against his was like touching the sky with her hands. Ivan's hand gripped her waist tightly, pulling her closer to him as if that was physically possible. The way her chest crashed against his sent blood running through his cock. His hand slid dangerously down her lower back near her ass. Once they were broke the kiss, Ivan reached out his hand to gently brush a strand of hair from her face. A gesture that would go unnoticed by everyone around but that he knew neither of them would take for granted. It was strange. It was overwhelming. It was something new for both of them. He simply slipped a hand around Lydia's waist so he could guide her around as they greeted some of the guests before having their first dance as Mr. and Mrs. Levan.

For a brief moment, he allowed himself to look askance at his new wife,. Her smile, which he knew was more than fake. Her little nose. Her lips that he would love to kiss again. Why? He didn't know. His eyes flicked to the top of her head, where her hair was tied up in an updo. Ivan would be more than happy to remove the pins to see what her hair looked like loose and wild. Why was he thinking so much about his new wife? His mind was on the fine line between wanting his wife becoming a problem or being a seduction game.

At least the worst of it was over. Or was it? Lydia wasn't sure, but she knew the only way forward was to suck it up and make the most of it. She had done everything she could beforehand: protest until she was blue in the face, throw a strop, told everyone - everyone being her father, mainly, and Ivan when she first initially discovered her fate - to go and fuck themselves. She went home, threw a hissy fit about it, probably cried angry tears then woke up the next day, defeated but over it. Didn't stop her from trying to worm her way out of it. Then, when that didn't work, she chose to ignore it. Ignored the date on her calendar, hoping if she ignored it, it would go away. Hoping the problem would magically be resolved by the time the day rolled by. It didn't.

So, she had no choice but to deal with it. The situation was diabolical but by all means, she was going to at least try to enjoy what she could. There was the reception to look forward to, and if it meant she could drink to make the ordeal more bearable then she would. What were they going to do? Stop the bride from enjoying her own wedding? The other part of her was dying to just take her shoes off and change into something more comfortable. Either way, she was determined to make the most of the day, whatever the cost. Even if it meant having to pretend. that she could do, but her natural fiestyness would not allow her to become docile so easily. It would take a while for her to back down, and she wouldn't. Not without making him work for it.

Yet, when he spoke to her, his breath hot against her skin, for a moment it felt like her heart had stopped beating. Whether it was fear, though she would vehemently deny it... or something else entirely. She wasn't sure. Hairs stood at the back of her neck, goosebumps against her skin. Lydia tried her best to play her poker face, the way she always would act as though nothing fazed her. At least he found her funny...why did she care whether she amused him or not? Nope. She didn't. Anyway. A fleeting moment of her breath caught in her throat and she recomposed herself, a hint of a smirk etched on her lips as she murmured back to him, "Threatening your new wife, hmm? That's cute. And here I thought romance was dead..." she mused with a thoughtful hum. "I know what you're capable of. That's why we're here, is it not?" Whether or not she liked to admit to herself, there was...something there. This was a dangerous man she was entangled with. She ought to be more careful. But maybe Lydia wanted to embrace the thrill of it all, test the waters, experiment with pushing his buttons. Even if she was in...deep, deep denial about it.

Remembering where they were when she felt the sudden pull, she resisted the urge to say 'what the fuck are you doing?' in front of all these people. She never had the chance to say anything else actually, or to think straight as Ivan's lips crashed against hers and she was...not complaining about that. Convinced herself it was part of the - whatever the fuck this was. She couldn't even say it to herself. Why did she feel sparks of electricity when they kissed? Uh, oh. Lydia chose to ignore it, to convince herself she was just getting...lost in the moment. It was a wedding, after all. Still she couldn't resist edging closer, breath caught in her throat as she deepened the kiss slightly, one arm making its way around the back of his neck, drawing him in that little bit closer. Definitely getting caught up with herself. Brought back to reality when she remembered, in fact - they weren't alone as the guests made a fuss around them. Her heart racing, she reluctantly pulled back to catch her breath after a few moments, trying to ignore the way her heart raced, rendered breathless as she peered up at him, her gaze drifting back to his lips and half tempted to..to what? Nope. She wasn't going there. Or was she? Well, this was about to get interesting.