“With that, Victor steadied Victoria with one arm. With his other hand, he took hold of the shoulder of her dress. Or at least, he tried to. It was very tight. After a second, he managed to close his fist around a handful of the dress, and began to attempt sliding it down her arm. Easier said than done, however. When I woke up today, this isn’t how I thought I’d be spending my morning, he thought, giving the sleeve another downward tug and eliciting another ‘oof!’ from Victoria.
The sudden exclamation from the doorway startled them both. Almost in unison, they turned to look. Alice, the maid, was standing there, hands pressed to her face and looking horrified. Before either Victor or Victoria could say a word, Alice was backing out the door.
‘I’m so very sorry!’ she cried, pulling the door swiftly shut behind her. Victor and Victoria were both still frozen in their places. Victor was sure that Victoria’s expression mirrored his own-an open-mouthed gape of surprise and embarrassment.”