Colin Bridgerton had his eyes fully closed. You could barely hear him breathing even if there was a deafening silence in the room. His head was sitting on Penelope's chest, his fully naked body still lying partially on top of her. At first glance, it would have seemed that he just fell asleep in perfect content but he was wide awake, just savouring every second of it.

Penelope was glancing at every part of him, trying to take mental pictures of every minuscule detail of his sweet face, muscular body and perfect little round bottom. She was listening to his every sound and feeling his chest slowly inflating and deflating against her tummy. In awe of the man she's loved since the first day they met, she was taking her time, caressing him and recalling all that just happened between them.

She was playing with his hair, tracing every curl and brushing them through her fingers. She was obsessed with his hair, so thick, silky and of a perfect shade of dark brown. She could just recall the first time she unashamedly got to touch it, pull gently on it and see the ecstatic look on his face. She had only now started comprehending the real meaning of love and passion. Every thought of Colin, every look, and smile, and every light touch were just causing a burst of electricity through her entire body.

Still with his eyes closed, Colin raised his head ever so slightly and kissed one of Penelope's breasts. A smile started to form on his face as he opened his eyes and looked straight at her.

"Hey" he whispered gently.

"Hey" she replied, just mouthing the word.

"Are you well?"

"Am I well? Colin… no, I'm not well, I'm at my happiest."

"Interesting... I believe I've just proven that I can make you happier than this…" he cheekily replied, alluding to the culmination of their intimate encounter just a few minutes earlier.

Penelope chuckled. The shamelessly proud look on Colin's face was everything. Then he burst out laughing. He truly couldn't keep a straight face after teasing her so openly. He pulled his hand up, gently resting on her thigh until this point, and caressed one of her cheeks, then proceeded to trace the curve of her jaw to the tip of her chin.

His expression became serious all of a sudden. His gaze was solely focused on her lips. He was tracing their shape with his thumb, going from one side to the other, lightly, feeling the plumpness of her mouth and occasionally hesitating, as he was deciding whether to kiss her now or tease her a bit more.

To his surprise, during one of these moments of hesitation, Pen ran the tip of her tongue on his fingertip and stared him straight in the eyes while doing it. Colin lightly tilted his head to the side and ran his thumb on her lower lip once again. This time not only she licked his fingertip but also kissed it swiftly before losing contact.

Colin's lips parted in awe. She was so innocent to that point. Or at least she was supposed to be? How could a brief touch from her cause all that turbulence in his entire body? He started imagining those lips on other parts of his body. His heart started beating faster and his gaze became darker and more serious.

"Would you be open to try something else?"

"Something else?" She asked, slightly worried and puzzled.

"Yeah…"

"There's even more than that?"

"You have no idea."

Penelope was baffled by her own naivety. Of course, there was more. A man like Colin, a traveler and explorer of the world, must have experienced too many things. So many intimate, passionate, sexual things. A slight worry overcame her – would she be up to his 'standards'? Surely French, Spanish and Italian women that lay with him before her had way more knowledge and practice.

"Do you think I can…?" she started asking, unsure of how to finish her own sentence.

"Pen" he looked at her, lovingly "I love you. You are everything that I want and dream of. You are the woman I love and the mother of my future children. You, and only you, can make me truly happy."

"But I…"

"We can explore everything together. We are going to learn from each other and make ourselves the happiest and most satisfied people in the world. I love every part of you and I … I want every part of you as long as you are comfortable with it."

"I am, but…"

"No buts" he tried to reassure her.

"Colin." she was trying to have a serious conversation but he was not having it.

"Penelope." he teased her, lowering the tone of his voice almost to a whisper "I'm not going to allow you to even think that you are in any way something less than what you are. In fact, you are so much more than you give yourself credit for. The fact that I traveled and experienced parts of foreign lands doesn't take anything away or doesn't add anything to… well, to 'us'."

Penelope was hating her insecurities. She hated the fact that her mind couldn't stop wondering if Colin was sure of his choices. She couldn't stop thinking about French women romancing her man. She couldn't stop thinking about how Colin must have had intimate interactions with exotic women and enjoyed it more because they were prepared, aware and, well, experienced.

"What I had in the past was physical satisfaction. I don't want that with you. That's not what love is about. I want passion, romance, friendship, trust. I want to feel my heart in my throat when I talk to you, when I see you smile and when I think about you. I want to blush in your presence, feel my body wanting you and lose my mind at the mere thought of standing by your side, proudly calling you my wife."

Penelope was captivated by Colin's words. He was great with words. She knew from peaking at his diaries already but he had this way of grabbing your attention with his sentences and leaving you lost for words.

"And… I mean, I don't want to lie to you… I also really, really want to see you unclothed and unashamed in front of me, many times after today, and for the rest of my days."

There was the Colin she always knew. The kind, witty boy she fell in love with from the start. They both chuckled.

"Come" he commanded her.

Colin pulled himself up and stood in front of Penelope, giving his back to the looking glass on the far side of the room. His stand would have been considered incredibly distinguished and sophisticated if only he'd been fully clothed. His posture right now was, luckily, for the gaze of the one and only Miss Penelope Featherington.

She was still sitting on the settee, partially covered by the blanket, waiting for further instructions. She was trying not to look directly at her lover's body. Her eyes were bouncing a bit all over the place, from his hair to his eyes, from his thighs to his chest. Her gaze briefly lingered on the looking glass, exploring the reflection of his bottom and the perfection of his silhouette.

"You can look at it. It is yours now, after all."

Colin had a lustful grin on his face. She was no longer a virgin and he was determined to teach her all that he knew about pleasure, passion and lust. He had always been proud of his body, yet he was feeling vulnerable so exposed in front of her. He was masking his insecurities with wit and false confidence. He was sure she would have seen right through him and, at that point, he didn't even care.

As much as he was recognising and understanding Penelope's exposed vulnerabilities, he couldn't but think about his own. The man he portrayed since the start of the season was not who he really was and, of course, she was the only one who called him out on that and understood. It was simply one of the best feelings in the world to be able to be truly yourself, especially in front of the person you adore, respect and love.

"Come" he repeated.

Penelope uncovered herself and stood up in front of him. Her gaze was lowered to his chest. She stepped one foot from him and placed one of her hands on his sternum. His hairs were poking out between her fingers and she could just see her hand moving in sync with his breathing.

"What do you want me to do?"

"I want us to know each other. I want to learn every inch of your body and I want you to explore mine. Everywhere."

"E-everywhere?" she questioned.

"Everywhere." he confirmed whispering, with a soft smile.

"Colin, can I ask you something?"

"Of course."

"When you kissed my breasts… That felt good. Is it… Does it… Does that happen just to women?" she timidly managed to ask.

"You mean to ask if I would enjoy it if it happened the other way around?"

She nodded.

"Yes, I would enjoy it. Very much."

Penelope timidly ran her fingers through Colin's chest up to his nipples, without touching them yet. He grabbed one of her hands, driving the movements, showing her how to caress his chest and lightly pinch his nipples.

"You can kiss me, lick me and do whatever you want. I'm yours." He encouraged her.

She was an inch away from one of his nipples. The height difference was playing in their favour as she was at exactly the right height for the task. She kissed him once in the middle of the chest, then another time. She was getting closer and closer and, when she reached the nipple. She used her tongue first, to trace its shape, and then lightly sucked on it with her plump lips, as she did with his thumb earlier.

Colin exhaled loudly, his chest sank for an instant and rapidly inflated back, making contact with Pen's lips once more. His eyes were closed. His head slightly tilted backward. His lips were just parted now, letting out an intelligible comment about her latest actions.

He promised himself not to rush things but he was already too aroused to stop himself. He pushed his head up, grabbed her neck and pulled her in a mouth-to-mouth kiss. His tongue was retracing the circles drawn by her tongue on his chest. The taste of her mouth had his own taste. He was, in a weird way, tasting his own chest and nipples and his soldier started to wake up for a new shift.

"Oh…" interrupted Penelope, surprised by the touch of his soldier hardening against her skin.

Colin stepped a foot backward to allow her a full view of nature taking its course.

"It's happening because of what you did." He explained in just a few words.

"But I haven't touched it"

"You touched me"

"And that caused it?"

"Yes, I told you. Your touch, your sight, the thought of you… they all make this possible."

"And can I…" She had it inside her before but she was still too ashamed to ask.

"You can touch it, yes." He reassured her with a smirk.

"How?"

Colin guided her fingers from his chest down to his belly button. And then further south. The tips of her fingers were now brushing through a thick bush of hair. Then, in the blink of an eye, she had his soldier in her hand. It was warmer than the rest of Colin's skin. Some of the veins were visible and even though she was holding it, she quickly realised that it was capable of holding itself up, quickly standing in front of her, and pointing its head towards her belly. Penelope giggled.

"Laughing at a man's manhood is not polite, miss Featherington." he uttered, trying not to take it too personally.

"I'm sorry." She blushed and almost let go.

"No, don't."

"I'm so sorry." She wanted to disappear.

"I'm joking, Pen… but giggling while holding it… it's like, well, stabbing me in the heart."

"It was an unintentional reaction, I promise. It's just… I can't believe it."

"Do you want to stop?" he asked, slightly worried.

"No!" She didn't even let an instant pass before answering.

"A man's… well, a man's private parts are very sensitive and everything that is felt in the body is manifested this way. The more I'm happy and content, the harder and stronger it gets."

"Is it painful?"

"No. It's not painful at all. It's the man's version of the woman's pleasure."

"So you feel what I feel when you… touch me down there?"

"Something like that, yes."

Colin stopped a moment to reflect on the fact that, in all his knowledge, there wasn't really an answer to that question. Were men's and women's pleasure experienced in the same way? He heard tales of the feeling of ecstasy in women but, of course, he never got to experience it personally. In one of his travels, he heard a tale from a seasoned man according to whom, female pleasure is much more intense than men's. According to this foreign gentleman, women are able to feel excitement through their whole bodies and for a prolonged amount of time. Still, according to this man, gentlemen are different. They feel more in the moment but then it's gone. If that was the case, maybe the universe gave women a better deal.

"And this is how I'll be coming to be with child?"

"Indeed."

"But we already… so might I be with child already?"

"Well, technically, yes. But it is not so simple."

"Wait, I could be?"

"Yes, Penelope. We could be already expecting. I mean, I did finish so, yes, that can be entirely possible."

"Finish?"

"Yes, I… reached peak happiness."

"I am utterly confused now." Pen looked puzzled. "So, if you are not happy, I can't be with child?"

"No…" Colin was getting confused himself. "Ehm, how do I explain it…"

"Just do it."

"Penelope, it's not… I don't think we shouldn't talk about these things…"

"Colin. My mama, my maid, my sisters… no one prepared me for this. I couldn't even talk to Eloise about this. I want to know. I feel silly not knowing. Please, can you teach me?"

Colin could feel the frustration in Penelope's words. He was baffled that ladies were presented to society and expected to marry and carry on all related duties without any guidance or knowledge. Looking at her now, he understood how fortunate he had been in his position. How fortunate he was to be a man, to have a loving family and, most of all, to be a Bridgerton.

"All right." He reassured her.

"Thank you." She whispered.

"Earlier, when we were intimate and my…" he cleared his voice "my soldier was inside you, we reached a point where we were more than happy. And I don't mean 'content', I mean… Your body and my body were overcome with emotions and you felt pleasure… I hope?" he interrupted his stream of thoughts.

Did she actually reach the point of ecstasy? He thought so but he just realised he didn't know for sure.

"You did, right?" he asked, slightly worried.

"If I understand what you are talking about, yes, I did. I felt my body shaking from the inside and my muscles contracted and then relaxed and it was a feeling I never felt before. It was like the feeling of eating your favourite cake, but a hundred times better, faster and satisfying."

"Good! Yes, that's what I meant." He sighed in relief, and then he continued. "Well, when this happens to a man, you can tell more easily if they have experienced… it."

"Okay"

Penelope was attentive, looking at every movement Colin was making, and she was purposely ignoring all the feelings of awkwardness caused by this matter.

"When a man feels pleasure, he produces a… liquid."

"A liquid?"

"Yeah…"

"I didn't see any… liquids? Are you saying that you didn't…?"

"I did." He briefly paused. "Inside you."

Penelope's mind clicked. The warm sensation she felt in her cave just after she reached excitement was 'Colin's excitement'. Colin's… liquid? That was so weird to think about.

"So, the more we do… the more likely we are to come with child?"

"Precisely." He concluded, almost too politely.

"Good to know. I do dream about a large family like yours…" she teased.

They both bust out laughing. Penelope realised that she'd been holding onto Colin's manhood through the entire conversation. And the wildest thing was that it just felt normal and natural now. He lowered his gaze and noticed the very same thing.

"You can let go if you wish."

"I don't think I want to…"

"Shall we head back to the settee? I have another couple of things I want to show you."

"Mister Bridgerton." She called him out with both lust and shock in her eyes.

"What?" he replied looking like a puppy. "I thought you wanted us to be honest about these things!"

"How did I fall in love with you?" she asked giggling.

"My charm." he proudly replied.

Penelope looked at Colin's body, mentally tracing a line around his silhouette, framing his jaw, every curl on his head, his shoulders and hips.

"Yeah… must have been your charm." She teased, shamelessly holding her gaze on his solder, once again.