The study was bathed in a soft glow from the light in the fireplace.  It was, in all, a welcoming place, if not a bit overly masculine, as studies tended to be.  And yet, Lucy was filled with apprehension as she stepped into the room, the baron's large form too close to her smaller one as he turns the key in the door.  He let her further into the chamber, and the proximity to him did nothing to calm her nerves and still her rapidly-beating heart.<br/><br/>His proffered port would, however.  Lucy couldn't help the tiny smile that curved her lips upward as she thought of the time when, as young girls, she had stolen a bottle of it and gifted it to Katie.  So proud, she had been.  Well, until it had made them both ill in the rosebushes outside the window of Katherine's room.  Katie had never quite developed a taste for it after, although she did imbibe when a social situation required it of her.  Lucy, on the other hand, had no compunctions about drinking spirits, enjoying the way they made her feel and relishing the taste.<br/><br/>He turned his head to look back at her and requested that she remove her dress, and she sucked in a breath.  The evening before, he had lifted her dress up and pulled her drawers down, baring her arse, and that had been shocking enough.  Now, he wanted her to remove her dress altogether?  Perhaps she should leave.<br/><br/>But she knew she wouldn't.  This was, after all, for Katie.  Or maybe it was to keep Lord Covington from calling in the guard to report her snooping from the night before.<em>Or perhaps it's because you liked how he made you feel last night.</em>That thought was unwelcome, and she tamped down.  No, this was for Katie.  It was Lucy's responsibility to ensure her mistress' safety.<br/><br/>Keeping her eyes on his, she stepped forward and clenched a shaking hand around the goblet of port, taking a deep sip of the dark liquid.  It warmed her insides, and she felt flushed before she even reached for the first button of her dress.  It was yellow, made of fine cotton left over from a night dress she'd stitched Katie two years ago.  Such was the benefit of being chosen the maid of a highborn lady; Lucy's clothing was not fancy, but it was always made of quality fabrics and of good enough taste that she could befitted serving Katherine.  And her lady did not require that she wear the black and white uniform of all of the other household servants.<br/><br/>Lucy was silent as she unfastened the tiny row of buttons that ran down her bosom to her abdomen.  As she undid the last one, she shrugged out of the dress, letting it pool at her feet, and stood before Hugh in only her plain muslin shift and her drawers underneath.  Would he want those things off too?  A shiver ran up her spine at the thought of baring herself completely to his view, and she wrapped her arms around herself even though the room was not cool.