You Looked Down on Me Once Now You Look Up (Patricia and Oliver) novel Chapter 372

“At least if I marry her, I’d never hurt Patricia or go after her money,” Oliver said quietly. “What’s hers is the Padilla family’s too. It’s always been that way since we were kids.” He shrugged, making it clear the thought of scheming against his own wife was just ridiculous.

But if it were someone else? Who knows.

Atticus let out a sharp laugh. “So what, am I supposed to thank you for ‘looking out’ for my niece?”

Oliver answered honestly, “I wouldn’t dare.”

“Oh, I think you dare plenty!” Atticus flicked his cigarette away, grabbed Oliver by the collar, and yanked him close. “If you ever mess with my niece, I’ll blow your whole house sky-high. I don’t care if your old man is Miles himself, I’ll do it.”

Atticus spit out the words, then let go, shoving Oliver back with a practiced flick of his wrist. Years in the service had taught him how to handle stubborn people—drag them close, give them an earful, then toss them aside. Usually, they’d stumble a bit, then straighten up.

But Oliver actually went down. Not just anywhere, either—he managed to fall right as Patricia and Grandma came out, landing right in front of them.

What a sneaky guy. Seriously, what a show.

Atticus locked eyes with Grandma, and she shot him a stern look. “That’s enough, Atticus. You’ve gone too far.”

“Patricia, help Oliver up.”

Patricia reached out, but Oliver pushed himself up, dusted off his pants, and—ever the gentleman—tried to cover for Atticus. “I’m fine. I just lost my balance.”

Grandma didn’t buy it for a second. “You don’t need to make excuses for him. I saw everything.”

“Either way, you’re married now. Patricia’s made her choice. As her elder, you should let it go and stop worrying. Kids have their own lives to live. They’ll find their own happiness.”

It was done. No point in fighting it.

That set Atticus off again. “What, he doesn’t have hands? Why do you have to get it for him?”

“Are you planning to spend your whole marriage waiting on him?”

“I’ll go,” Oliver said, ignoring Atticus’s anger. He took Patricia’s hand and they headed out to the driveway together.

As soon as they were gone, Maggie smacked Atticus’s arm, hard enough to leave a handprint on his tanned skin. “What’s wrong with you? Did you swallow a firecracker or something? We’re all family now. Can’t you just talk like a normal person?”

Atticus stepped out of reach, rubbing his arm. “Did you see the way he bosses my niece around?”

Maggie rolled her eyes. “If you want them to treat each other well, you have to set the example.”

Atticus grumbled under his breath, “If I hadn’t been so nice to him before, he never would’ve had the guts to go after Patricia.”