"Livia, please let up a bit," Serena protested again, her fingers digging into the edge of the dressing table as the corset ties dug painfully into her back. Livia had been going at this for quite some time now. She had come into the room and dumped the clothes as soon as she saw Charlotte in the corner of the room lounging like a cat.
Livia looked uncomposed before she threw herself furiously into her work and dressed Serena up haphazardly. Serena wondered how the zips had not broken from the Livia was pulling on them.
The other woman grumbled under her breath, muttering words Serena couldn't catch but her narrowed eyes flicked toward Charlotte like sharpened knives.
Charlotte sat on a low cushioned bench near the hearth, arms crossed, gaze locked on the fire, as if it might give her patience. Her legs were tucked neatly, her posture deceptively composed.
"You are trying to crush my ribs," Serena said through a breathless laugh, trying to ease the tension.
