You Looked Down on Me Once Now You Look Up (Patricia and Oliver) novel Chapter 706

Patricia was half-awake and a little irritated as she nudged the man behind her. He didn’t budge.

She rolled over, reaching for Oliver’s phone, but when her chest brushed his forehead, the heat made her pull back instantly.

“Oliver?” she called softly. “Oliver?”

She shook him gently. He finally opened his eyes, voice rough and scratchy. “What’s wrong?”

“You’re burning up,” she said, pressing her palm to his forehead. Worry spiked through her. She quickly told Johns to call a doctor and bring up the first-aid kit to check his temperature. The whole house was thrown into a frenzy that morning because the master was sick.

Oliver’s phone kept ringing in the bedroom. Patricia didn’t dare answer any calls except when Hector’s name flashed across the screen. She picked up. Before she could get a word out, Hector’s voice exploded over the line. “Where are you? You’re supposed to give the speech today as the national young entrepreneur rep! The media and all the officials are waiting. Where the hell are you?”

“Mr. McKee, Oliver has a fever,” Patricia replied.

“What?” Hector blurted out, sounding like he’d just heard something impossible. The man was usually tough as nails. Did he jinx himself or something? Hector tried to steady his nerves. “How high is it? Can he still make it?”

Patricia looked at Oliver lying in bed, his arm covering his eyes, face twisted in discomfort. “I don’t know.”

“Put him on the phone,” Hector snapped.

Patricia moved closer, kneeling by the bed and whispering, “Oliver, it’s Mr. McKee.”

Oliver cracked his eyes open, saw the worry written all over her face, and couldn’t help but pull her into his arms. He pressed a gentle kiss to her hair.

“But you’re sick.”

“It’s fine. The meeting’s only an hour and a half. I can handle it.”

“Can’t you make an exception just this once?” Patricia pleaded.

He pulled her into his arms. “Silly girl, it takes more than money for a company to keep growing. If you want it to last, you need a good reputation, too. Meetings like this, international summits, they’re chances for the whole country to see us. You don’t get those every day.”

In other words, he had to go, no matter what.