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Colin was in the midst of the most delightful dream imaginable: he found himself united in matrimony to Miss Penelope Featherington - now Mrs. Bridgerton - and she loved him.
His eyes fluttered open to a different room than he was expecting. For a moment, he was suspended in a haze between sleep and wakefulness, his heart fluttering with a familiar ache. In his half-dreaming state, memories of longing glances and silent prayers flooded his mind—weeks of pining over Penelope from afar, his feelings cloaked in the silent despair of the undeclared. He rolled over, expecting to find an empty space beside him, a poignant reminder of his solitary dreams. But instead, he was met with the sight of Penelope next to him. Her features were relaxed, an expression worn by a woman at peace. Her presence, so real and close, jolted him fully awake. It can't be, he thought, his heart skipping a beat. The realization dawned slowly, overwhelmingly—that the wedding, the vows, the wedding night—it had not been a dream. He and Penelope had engaged in intimate relations before, yet they had always been forced to part ways. He would awaken the next morning with the ghost of her lips lingering on his own, only to find himself in an empty bed. No more.
Tears welled up in his eyes as the weight of reality set in. He was no longer alone; the love he had harbored in silence had been met with passion equally profound. A sob escaped him, a mixture of joy and suppressed hope being released.
Penelope stirred, her eyes opening to the sight of Colin's tear-streaked face. Concern quickly replaced her stupor as she propped herself on one elbow, reaching out to brush the tears from his cheeks.
"Colin, what is amiss?" Her voice was soft, laced with worry.
Colin shook his head, a small laugh escaping through his tears.
"I thought—I thought it was all but a dream," he whispered, his voice layered with emotion.
Understanding dawned on Penelope's face, and her smile was tender, filled with an emotion so deep it reinforced the truth of their new reality . She nestled close to him.
"Oh, no, it is no dream, my love. This is real," she assured him as her lips pressed a gentle kiss to his forehead. "I am here, and I shall not depart. I shall be right here every morn, for the rest of our lives."
His tears continued for a moment, born now from a profound relief and happiness. As he held her in his arms, the fears and insecurities of yearning and jealousy dissolved, replaced by the steady beat of a shared future. In this quiet morning light, Colin finally allowed himself to believe in the beautiful, incredible reality: he was loved, and he would never have to wake up alone again.