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“Christ! This is considered trespassing. Why is security still letting you in?” Penelope has just walked back into her office and seems startled by his presence in her office.
Colin Bridgerton pulls this little stunt every couple of months—leaves one day for an extended research trip and the next will suddenly reappear in Penelope Featherington’s office. He is currently sprawled on the green loveseat that is far too small and leafing through a few books Penelope keeps in her office.
“Is that how you welcome everyone back, or is that warmth and love you emanate just for me?” Colin takes a moment to sit up properly and before returning Pen’s books to their correct places on her shelves. “To answer your second question, it helps when your name is on the building and that Dunwoody, and I have come to an agreement.” He finally completes this task and walks toward Penelope with open arms before pulling her into an all-enveloping hug that she returns just as tightly.
Colin lets himself lean into the moment, it has been four months since he saw her last and he might not say it often, but he misses her the most. He’s rocking them from side to side, letting their hug drag out just a little longer. Colin is also working up to telling her why she is the first to know that he’s arrived back in London, not even his mother knows of his arrival yet.
“Sorry I didn’t check in before crashing yours. Anthony is out with someone named Kate surveying a site in Surrey, and Ben has locked himself away to wrap up the design on the East Ham project.”
He has missed a lot since he was last in London as every one of his siblings is sure to let him know. Penelope is the only one, besides his mother, that actually is interested in his day-to-day even when the time difference makes it difficult for them to communicate in a timely manner.
“I’m sure Anthony will love to hear how his head of security can be paid off by travel souvenirs, and Kate is the new structural engineer that Danbury hired. You’ll love her.” Penelope laughs and pulls away from him to head back to her desk. “But welcome home, nonetheless. Happy to have you loitering around the premises for the next few weeks.”
He ignores the seat she offers him across her desk and instead follows her to lean on her desk in front of her. He’s only a few inches from her when he leans down to whisper. “About that actually. I’ll need you to keep what I’m about to say between us, and no telling Eloise about it either.”
“You may want to close the door then. Eloise likes to show up down here unannounced, sort of like someone else I know.” Penelope is sporting a little shit-eating grin and smiling up at him. He takes a moment to make the same face back at her before moving to close the door.
“I’ve bought a place. No one knows I did, well except Will who finalized everything for me while I was in Singapore. But that’s the big news; I bought a place!”
Colin is so caught up in his own excitement that he misses the dim look that Penelope flashes him.
“That- um. I’m so happy for you Colin. Truly. I’m sure it’s everything you’ve ever wanted.” Colin has never seen Penelope so reserved before. Quiet, sure. Uncertain at times, but never reserved.
Colin is so excited to finally share this news with someone. “You’d love the view of the park from the office window. I remembered your advice about having windows that face east to west because then the sun won’t be warming up the place during the day. And there’s some work I want to get done before I fully move in, but you’ll have to come by and see it sometime soon.”
“I’d love to, Colin. Might have to clear a few days to visit but that shouldn’t be difficult to pull off. Maybe next month?” She’s not looking at him anymore. Penelope is steadily avoiding his gaze and is instead flipping through the calendar on her desk.
“Next month? What are you talking about next month? We can go down there when you get off work.” Colin is suddenly very aware that Penelope is not reacting positively to his news. “Pen? Talk to me.”
“So where is this new place, hm. Greece? Santa Barbara? Kyoto? Though if it is Kyoto I may need an extra day to factor in jetlag. So, what country has claimed Colin Bridgerton as its new resident.”
Colin is feeling a little flustered now that he knows where he went wrong. He just jumped the gun a bit, he’ll course-correct when he breaks the news to the rest of his family.
“Pen, it’s here. I bought the place in Bloomsbury that’s down the street from that café you love so much. I’m moving back home. Permanently. Still don’t know wha- oof.”
He takes a moment to grasp the fact that Penelope shot up from her desk to hug the living daylights out of him. She’s already pulling back from him before he can fully return the embrace, though she only pulls back far enough so that they’re both still holding onto each other’s arms.
“Oh, Colin this is brilliant news! Does Violet know? Does Anthony? Oh my god. You bought a place and here I was mentally preparing myself to accept that we’d never be in the same time zone again. Colin, you bought a place here.” Her face is so bright and happy that Colin gets sort of caught up in it, in her.
That was the is the other part of it. He’s still working through defining the little thrill he gets when he sees a text from Penelope come through. The anticipation that builds up in him as he counts down the hours until their scheduled phone calls. The joy he feels when he reads her sporadic emails that serve more as a rambling sentence than anything with structure.
Colin knows that these feelings were borne out of their long friendship, that somewhere between meeting Penelope and this exact moment, something shifted in him. Maybe it was there all along.
“I heard yelling. You two look chummy.”
Eloise lets herself fully into Penelope’s once she reasons Colin is at the root of the commotion she heard. It took Eloise a lot of trial and error before she stopped waltzing into Penelope’s office, especially when the door was closed. She goes to sit across them both on the chair Penelope originally offered Colin.
“Your brother was just sharing some news that caught me a bit off guard.” Penelope’s face flushes slightly before she pulls away from Colin to sit back down on her chair. “You might as well tell her now. She’ll be relentless otherwise.”
“If this is about Colin moving back then I already know.” Eloise goes to take a marker from Penelope’s desk and starts doodling on her palm. She has the most satisfied look on her face as she finishes tracing a small flower on herself. “Alice accidentally let it slip when she came by last week. Place looks really nice by the way, mum’s gonna love it. Oh, and welcome back.”
“Please tell me you haven’t told anyone, El?” Colin is a little upset that his major surprise could very well turn out to be another blip on the Bridgerton Family Radar.
“I haven’t told Ben.” Which means no one else knows. “Only person you really have to worry about is Hy. She sleuths when she isn’t staffing the archives desk.” Eloise makes little air quotes around sleuth before turning to look at Penelope.
“Still up for lunch? I have a hankering for some chips.”
“Am I invited?” Colin asks.
“As long as you order your own food.” Penelope responds.
“You know you ladies love to share.” Colin is already following behind Eloise before stopping to help Penelope with her coat.
“I’d love it if we could make haste. I want a good table before the finance bros descend.”
“Make haste? What are you eighty?” Colin pushes the button to call the lift. “Are we to promenade after lunch? Shall I escort you ladies to your mamas?”
“Oh, shove it!” Eloise elbows Colin on the side as she enters the lift.
“After you, my lady.” He takes an exaggerated bow and gestures for Penelope to enter ahead of him.
His antics manage to get a laugh out of Penelope and his day gets considerably better at that.
“Let us make haste Mr. Bridgerton.” Penelope joins in on the fun by giving him a little bow.
She makes him laugh then. Colin can sort out his feelings later.