You Looked Down on Me Once Now You Look Up (Patricia and Oliver) novel Chapter 572

A knot tightened in Oliver’s chest. For a second, he just stood there, completely lost.

If he brought Patricia back now, she’d have to miss the board meeting tomorrow. She’d been planning for this day forever. Walking away from Riverdale would mean throwing all her hard work out the window.

But if he didn’t bring her home, with Grandpa’s health hanging by a thread, the Padilla family would never let it go. They’d think Patricia was avoiding them. She hadn’t even met them yet, and already things were getting complicated. None of this looked good.

Oliver felt trapped, no matter which way he turned.

“She’s sick,” he finally said, voice low. “She had a high fever last night.”

“But I just saw Aunt Patricia last even—” Sara started, but Roger gave her arm a quick tug and nodded at Oliver.

“Don’t worry, Uncle Oliver,” Roger said. “We know Aunt Patricia has a fever.”

At six thirty in the morning, their plane landed in Golden Bay. The three of them headed straight for the hospital.

When Oliver got to the VIP floor, the hallway was packed. The Padilla family and all their distant relatives crowded the space, talking in hushed voices.

His aunt eyed him up and down, then looked around as if searching for someone. “So, you got married and didn’t even bring your wife home. Now, at a time like this, you’re still hiding her? If something happens to Grandpa, are you really prepared to live with that regret?”

It was Miles’s sister-in-law—Aunt Tina—who said it.

Oliver kept his cool. “She’s sick. I didn’t want her passing anything to Grandpa.”

“That’s right, Grandma Grace,” Sara jumped in, trying to lighten the mood. “Aunt Patricia’s had a fever since last night. She’s still not better. Uncle Oliver only left her to come here. He’d feel horrible if anything happened, so please, don’t blame him.”

She was making it clear: Oliver put family first, and Patricia really was sick. Neither of them was at fault.

The Padilla clan was huge, and everyone was related in some way, but most people didn’t dare stir up trouble in front of the main family.

As for Aunt Tina’s complaints—well, that was a whole other story.

…

Back in Golden Bay, Oliver stood in the hospital corridor, talking quietly with Miles.

His phone buzzed. He glanced at the message and locked the screen without replying.

“You should stay a few days this time,” Miles said. “Let Hector handle things at the company.”

“I’ll try,” Oliver replied.

Things were messy with Patricia. He couldn’t just leave her alone for too long.

As soon as Oliver said “I’ll try,” Miles’s expression tightened.

“You’ve been married three years,” Miles said. “You’ve been back for almost a year, and you still haven’t brought her home. You better hope Grandpa gets through this. If this is the end, and after all this time he never even got to meet the granddaughter-in-law he’s waited for—well, I wonder who’ll regret it more. You, or him.”

In both the Padilla and Brooks families, Oliver was the youngest grandson. He was also the only one who hadn’t brought his wife home yet.