penelope thought herself a bit dramatic, but a walk along the cliffs near the seaside was just the thing she needed after the previous day's travel. oh, it wasn't the travel that bothered her. likely enough, it was the company that was quite taxing. at least here the appreciation of nature and need of fresh air were good excuses to get away from her family.
"all eligible gentlemen have absconded to the sea side!" her mother had exclaimed to her father and that was all it had taken to plan their own trip (maybe that and the opportunities that mr featherington might have to fish in solitude). penelope tried to hide her excitement at the prospect of visiting sanditon, a place she knew her dearest friend was visiting at that very moment. it also might do to hide the fact that the three eldest bridgerton brothers were there as well. her mother and sisters would be whipped up into a tizzy. an absolute tizzy.
so she'd kept quiet, endured a cramped carriage ride, and, the morning after their arrival, grabbed her parasol after breakfast and went out for a walk. she breathed in the fresh air and admired the lovely scenery. a sense of peace washed over her and she was able to get lost in her thoughts, which inevitably wandered toward thinking about a certain third eldest bridgerton.
however, the peace did not last long. the sounding of hooves caused her to blink in astonishment as a horse without a rider barreled right past her on the road. she glanced back in the direction it had come from and saw a gentleman picking himself up and standing with a bit of a wobble. she continued on the road toward him and when she got close enough she called out. "pardon me, sir...did your horse abandon you?"