The set was a field of turquoise with nowhere for the eye to wander. Maca answered it in white silk and a red lip, the cleanest possible contrast. Gold at her ear supplied the final point of heat.

Saturated color asked for restraint. Maca lowered her chin, held one hand still, then turned her shoulder by a few degrees. Those small adjustments gave the frame its shape. Color and silhouette could do the rest.