That startled him into a soft laugh. "Me either," he agreed. Which went without saying, obviously, but really he was agreeing to what he perceived to be the sentiment underlying it: perhaps we ought to lower all our expectations, in light of the circumstances. And it did seem a relief to think she might not be pinning all of the hopes and dreams she had ever had about her wedding on him — it was an awfully tall order to fill, even for someone who wasn't already in love with someone else, like he was. He dropped his hands down from her laces and rested them, almost experimentally, on her hips.

He still didn't know if he could do this, but having his hands on her gave him some confidence in that area. He may not have seen her properly undressed yet but he knew her body would have nothing in common with Tycho's, and if he focused on the physical aspects of her he thought maybe the novelty could carry him through. But just because he could didn't mean that they should.

"We don't have to," he said softly. "If you don't want. We're going to be married the rest of our lives. We've got plenty of time. And no one will know what happens tonight except us," he pointed out. "If you'd rather wait until we're not strangers anymore..."

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