You Looked Down on Me Once Now You Look Up (Patricia and Oliver) novel Chapter 415

In the garden at Cloud Peak, Chelsea wandered around, curiosity lighting up her face. She kept glancing here and there, soaking it all in.

She spotted a perfectly round, manicured tree not too far away and wandered over, poking at its shiny leaves. Jackson trailed after her, acting like some kind of walking price tag. “That one? Four hundred fifty thousand,” he said without missing a beat.

Chelsea’s eyes drifted to a dramatic pine tree that looked like it belonged on a postcard. Jackson’s voice got a little heavy. “That one’s over a million.”

Anywhere Chelsea paused, Jackson was ready with another jaw-dropping number, turning the whole stroll into a crash course on just how expensive rich people’s landscaping could get.

Chelsea shook her head, half in disbelief. “Any one of these trees probably costs more than my whole life.”

Jackson nodded, totally serious. “Same.”

The way rich people lived was just… hard to wrap your head around. It wasn’t that Chelsea hadn’t seen wealth before. It just never seemed worth it.

But to Oliver, their awe and skepticism just made things more interesting. He liked the way they brought a different energy into his world. He definitely didn’t want to come home after a long day and see a yard full of wilted, sad little plants. What was the point of making money if you didn’t spend it? He wasn’t about to save it all just to leave it to three kids who’d blow it anyway.

Across the courtyard, Patricia was on the phone, her face drawn tight with worry. Whatever she was hearing, it definitely wasn’t good. It took her more than ten minutes to hang up and walk over to Chelsea.

“Why aren’t you inside?” Patricia asked.

Chelsea stood with her arms folded, staring at the most expensive pine. “I was just thinking about something.”

Patricia followed her gaze. “Thinking about what?”

Chelsea pointed at the pine. “If I dug up that tree and sold it, how much lab gear could I buy?”

Patricia barely cracked a smile. “You wouldn’t live long enough to find out.”

“Mr. Padilla loves that tree.” She’d seen him plenty of times, just standing at the living room windows, looking out at it. Sometimes he’d even head outside just to take it in up close.

“Emerson wants to buy out Skyline Entertainment. He’s trying to talk the shareholders into voting yes at the board meeting at the end of the month.”

Chelsea blinked. “Skyline Entertainment? That’s an entertainment company, right? Why’s he getting into that business?”

“Ruby’s coming back.”

Chelsea’s eyes widened. “Her leg’s healed already? That fast?” A broken leg, especially with a prosthetic, took ages to adjust to. Ruby hadn’t even been gone a year.

Patricia poured herself some tea. “She’s in a hurry. She’s not interested in waiting around. She wants to prove herself, no matter what.”

Pride was a funny thing. Patricia remembered her own rehab years, how all she could think about was getting back on her feet and taking her life back. The anger burning inside Ruby right now? Patricia knew exactly what that felt like.

Chelsea let out a small, bitter laugh. And just like that, she had nothing left to say.