Penelope - Determined
The morning the Featheringtons were to leave town, Penelope had a visitor. "Not too long Penelope. We need to get going." Her Mother instructed whilst trying to get Prudence out the door.
Nobody was more surprised than Penelope to see Eloise waiting for her. "Eloise! What brings you here?" Other than to give her another tongue lashing.
"I am still mad with you, but you did warn me that no good would come from my uncovering Lady Whistledown. However, I have come to speak to you about Colin." Eloise looked as uncomfortable being there as Penelope felt. "He doesn't want to lose your friendship."
Penelope shrugged. "Colin need not be concerned. It is not as though he said anything I have not heard before." Even her own family had little hope of anyone courting her. The problem was that she didn't just want to be Colin's friend. She had wanted more.
"If Colin were to write to you, would you read his letters?" Eloise was usually so confident but today it was as though she were trying to figure out what Penelope's response would be.
"Why would he bother?" Penelope thought she had made herself clear in her earlier response.
"Because he cares for you. More than he even realised." Eloise was getting frustrated, and Penelope's Mother was gesturing for her to hurry up.
"Fine. I will read and response to his letters. I must go." Penelope hurried past Eloise and got into the coach. Colin would soon tire of writing to her. Especially when he met someone else.
Much to Penelope's surprise, Colin did not tire of writing to her. When the new season approached, Penelope focused on keeping anyone else from discovering she was Lady Whistledown as clearly no one was interested in courting her. Even her mother was more focused on getting Prudence married off.
She had managed to avoid both Colin and Eloise until her mother had decided they needed to promenade in order to find suitors for Prudence. He had been talking to a stunning couple and she had hoped to slip past unnoticed. But luck as usual was not in her favour.
"Pen! Have you met the Kentingtons?" He reached out to her so that she could not pretend she hadn't heard him.
"No. It's a pleasure to meet you." The man was tall with dark hair and twinkling blue eyes. His wife was slightly taller than Penelope with red hair and blue eyes which seemed to notice all that went on around her. "What brings you to the Ton this season?"
"I have some business to take care of and couldn't bare to be away for several weeks from my wife and son." Mr Kentington looked down adoringly at his petite wife.
"Where is your son at the moment?" Colin looked around. He couldn't see a maid with a young child that he didn't recognize.
"Over feeding the ducks with my Mother-in-law." Mr Kentington pointed to an older version of his wife who had a min version of Mr Kentington with her.
"He's adorable." Penelope frowned slightly when she saw the little boy gesture to his grandmother who appeared to be responding with her hands. "What is he doing?"
"Our son is deaf. He is speaking to his grandmother." Mrs Kentington looked proudly at her son. "He can also read lips."
"Mr Bridgerton. How good to see you?" Cressida Cowper walked right in front of Penelope as though she wasn't there. Something that judging from Mrs Kentington's expression annoyed the stunning woman.
"Miss Cowper." Colin acknowledged her but gestured that she should step aside.
"Oh Penelope. I did not see you there." Cressida oozed falseness. "Do you see the strange child by the pond who keeps gesturing to the woman I take is his grandmother?"
If looks could kill, Cressida would have been struck down on the spot. "Mrs Kentington. Could I please meet your adorable son?" Penelope half expected Mrs Kentington to slap Cressida.
"I'd be delighted Miss Featherington." She gave Penelope a genuine smile before turning to her husband. "My love, perhaps Mr Bridgerton can tell you where we can purchase a new dining table from." Shooting Cressida an evil look, Mrs Kentington walked Penelope over to meet her son leaving Cressida looking as though she wished the ground would open up and swallow her whole.
"What happened to your dining table?" Colin turned his back on Cressida. Her act of pretending she didn't not notice Penelope's presence had long gotten old.
"My Wife and I broke it." Mr Kentington watched his Wife introducing Penelope to their son. "Your young lady is very sweet. Other's ignorance is the very reason we will only be here a few weeks." Cressida turned even more pale than she already was.
Across the lawn by the pond Penelope found young Marcus Kentington as charming as his Parents. "How did your dining table break?" Penelope asked once Marcus and his grandmother moved on to feed more ducks.
"Well, we had tucked Marcus into bed, and we came downstairs, and the mood took us and the dining table was closer than our bed." Mrs Kentington gestured with her hands. Obviously, she was so used to speaking with her hands to her son that Penelope clearly understood how the table had been broken.
"Perhaps this time you should get one made out of Oak." Penelope was certain she was turning a bright shade of red. Mrs Kentington on the other hand seemed unaffected. She had a handsome husband. Why should she be?
"The last one was also made out of Oak." Mrs Kentington smiled at Penelope. "How long have you and Mr Bridgerton been courting?"
"Colin and I aren't courting." Penelope frowned. "What made you think we were?" Nobody else had made that assumption. Quite the opposite in fact. Perhaps it was because she was new to the Ton.
"The way he lit up when he saw you and can not keep his eyes off of you. The way he reacted to that appalling Cowper woman when she deliberately ignored you. Not to mention the pride on his face when you asked to meet my son when she showed such ignorance." Mrs Kentington glanced over to where her husband and Colin were still talking. Cressida had clearly moved on before she could put her foot any further in her mouth. "Mr Bridgerton looks at you the way my Gerald looks at me."
"I hardly think Colin looks at me as though he would like to break a solid Oak table with me." Penelope wouldn't even consider the possibility after past disappointments.
"Perhaps you are not paying attention." She reached out her hand to her son. "I think it's time we got back to our gentlemen." Young Marcus happily swung between his mother and Grandmother until they were a few feet from his father. Breaking free he ran up to his father who scooped him into his arms.
"What were you two ladies discussing?" Colin could not begin to guess from Mrs Kentington's gestures and Penelope's red face.
"My wife was enlightening Miss Featherington on how we broke our dining table." Mr Kentington chuckled. "I must get my family home. Perhaps we will see each other again at the Danbury Ball."
"I look forward to it." Colin bid the family good day. He turned to Penelope. "It's good to see you, Pen. I have missed you."
"Mrs Kentington was under the impression we were courting. You may want to inform Mr Kentington that we are not so that you need not announce it at the Danbury Ball." Penelope nodded goodbye and went in search of her mother and Sister. She would need to get in touch with the Printer with the next edition of Lady Whistledown.