The third season of ‘Bridgerton’ — which is set to premiere on May 16 — will follow the friendship between Penelope (Nicola Coughlan) and Colin (Luke Newton) as it blossoms into a romance

It seems Lady Whistledown will be a diva down as Penelope Featherington stumbles through an insurmountable crush on her longtime friend Colin in season 3 of Bridgerton.

In a sneak peek released on Thursday, fans get a glimpse at the lustful intrigue — not to mention befuddled flirtation! — to come in the period romance’s highly anticipated third season.

Part 1 of season 3 is set to drop May 16 on Netflix and will follow Penelope (Nicola Coughlan) navigate her growing chemistry with Colin Bridgerton (Luke Newton) in all its awkward and adorable glory.

In the preview clip, the pair are alone together when Penelope tells Colin, “Your eyes are the most remarkable shade of blue, yet somehow they shine ever brighter when you are kind.”

Realizing she’s put herself out there a little too much, Penelope walks her affectsions back, adding that she “might say something like that if you were a suitor.”

“Well, that was rather direct,” Colin responds, just as flustered. Soon enough, someone else enters the room and the moment has passed.

The sweet sneak peek isn’t the only preview Netflix has shared.

Netflix’s year-ahead trailer, also released Thursday, also included a suggestive flash of Colin and Penelope breathing heavily in the dark.

It’s a signature steamy moment on the series, occurring both between Anthony Bridgerton (Jonathan Bailey) and Kate Sharma (Simone Ashley) in a library last season, and between Daphne Bridgerton (Phoebe Dynevor) and Simon Basset (Regé-Jean Page) in a garden in season 1. Both of those two couples went on to marry, so it’s clear Penelope and Colin are well on their way to happily ever after.

And back in December when the streaming service announced the new episodes would arrive in two parts — with part 1 premiering on May 16 and part 2 dropping on June 13 — it shared a compilation of footage of the upcoming season, including a glimpse at Penelope and Colin dancing together.

The hit series helmed by executive producers Shonda Rhimes and Chris Van Dusen and based on the beloved Bridgerton book series is confirmed to stray from the order of its source material in season 3 by focusing on Penelope and Colin’s love story. Their relationship isn’t the subject of the books until the fourth novel, Romancing Mister Bridgerton.

Despite season 3 deferring from the order of the books, Coughlan told PEOPLE in a June 2023 interview that “it’s really special and it stays very true to the books.”

“I always look at the three seasons like this. I think season 1 was about passion, season 2 was about longing and season 3, I think it’s romance all the way,” said the Irish actress, 37. “It’s just so romantic.”

She added, “There were a lot of moments on set where we filmed something and we’d turn around and everyone was sort of clutching their chest being like ‘Oh my God.’ It was that kind of love.”

As season 3 begins, Penelope is socially stranded after being outed as Lady Whistledown to her best friend Eloise (Claudia Jessie), who also happens to be Colin’s younger sister. Without the company and support of her friends, Penelope decides to take her life into her own hands.

“She’s like a woman on a mission,” Coughlan told PEOPLE of her character in the forthcoming season. “She’s ready to go, ready to launch herself out into the marriage market in a new way. She wants a whole new look, and she gets it.”