Wouldn't You Like to Know?

Sixteen

Sixteen

The last time he had seen Portia Featherington, she had shut the door in his face and told him never to speak to Penelope again. That had been after everything had happened with Marina when they were teenagers, and the prom. Now, she came out of the elevator and walked directly to him, giving him a withering glare. There were few women in the world that didn't like him, but Portia Featherington had never fallen for the Bridgerton charm.

Still, Colin wanted to be with Penelope, so, he made himself smile when he saw her. "Portia!"

Portia's gaze narrowed even more. "Did I not make myself clear the last time we spoke, Colin Bridgerton?"

Colin frowned. "Portia, I was an idiot teenager trying to be famous. I agreed to whatever my agent wanted because it advanced my career, and that included dating Marina."

"While you were fucking my daughter," she said coldly.

Colin winced. "Penelope told me she didn't want to date me because she didn't want o interfere with my future. I've always wanted her."

"Is that why you pretended to date Marina Thompson while sleeping with her?" Portia said, her eyes looking glacial with coldness. "You know, when you and Marina had that pregnancy scare and almost got married, she couldn't get out of bed for almost a whole year. Then, you ended up calling the whole thing off when you graduated. Of course, you weren't speaking to Penelope at that point, so she found out from the internet. I don't know what your intentions are, Colin Bridgerton, but if you think---"

"Your daughter and I are working together," Colin lied. It wasn't exactly a lie, although it wasn't the whole truth. "Her boss is Lulu Rochester. I bought her latest book, and I'm turning it into a movie and.... I never wanted to hurt Penelope. I would have loved to have been with her when we were in school, she was the one that always insisted that we couldn't be because she wasn't "right" for me. And you know what I got from that?"

Portia's eyes narrowed. "What?"

"She was getting that idea from you. You were always telling her that she wasn't good enough because she wasn't thin. She thought her and me weren't a good fit because of her weight, but she's Penelope. She's funny, and smart, and I've loved her since we were kids. I'm going to be with her, Portia, and I'm not going to let you get in her head and stop us from it."

Portia raised an eyebrow. "I never once told my daughter that she wasn't good enough for you."

"No?" Colin said. "Who else could have put that idea in her head?"

"That ex-girlfriend of yours," Portia said, "she pretended to be Penelope's friend, and then she got pregnant, and realized that she needed someone to be the father. She was the one that was always telling Penelope that she wasn't good enough for you, because people would be cruel if you were with someone like her. Penelope was trying to be her friend and figure out what to do about how to help her. I won't have my daughter be that low ever again, so if you even think about messing with her head like you did last time, I WILL ruin you the same way you did Penelope."

"How the fuck did I ruin Penelope?" he furrowed his brows together. "What the hell are you even talking about?"

Portia stiffened. "Ask my daughter, if you care for her so much."

He straightened himself. "I am not the same young man that I was Portia. I love Pen, and I'm going to be with her. She's the one for me. Besides...whatever you think I did to her; you and your husband did worse."

Portia's mouth pursed. "What are you talking about?"

"You owe Penelope everything that you have and you don't even know. Ask her about Whistledown Blast."

Portia raised an eyebrow. "What on earth is that?"

"The anonymous source that exposed your husband's fraud," he said, "Penelope isn't who you think that she is. She can take care of herself. "

Portia stared at him and he wondered if she were having a stroke for a moment.

Colin sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "I'm not going to hurt Penelope. I've got no intention of that. But I'm not the only one that's hurt her, Mrs. Featherington."

"Get out!" Portia shouted. "Get out of my home this instant!"

"Gladly," he said, and he flipped her off right before he left to go find the only person he really wanted to talk to, which was Penelope, and not her god-awful mother.