You Looked Down on Me Once Now You Look Up (Patricia and Oliver) novel Chapter 723

Sara was right. This guy really was an old fox, sly and impossible to read. No good would come from getting tangled up with him.

Patricia shifted a little in his arms, and Mr. Padilla stepped back just enough to give her some breathing room. She lifted her chin with a hint of a smile. “If this was the old days, Mr. Padilla, wouldn’t you be my benefactor?”

“Other people trade themselves for glory. Me? I trade myself for information.”

Mr. Padilla laughed quietly. One hand on his hip, the other propped on the counter, he moved a little closer, careful to keep her from the cold edge of the vanity. “If the benefactor’s in my situation, I think he’s the one being played.”

Patricia scrunched up her lips, not really wanting to bicker in the bathroom. She started to push him away, but Oliver caught her face between his hands and kissed her hard, catching her completely off guard. Before she could react, he let go, patted her lower back, and told her, “Come on out.”

In the living room, Marian handed her a bowl of freshly made bird’s nest soup. Patricia stirred it slowly and glanced over at Oliver. “The Jenkins family you mentioned, is that the Jenkins family from Golden Bay? One of the big eight?”

Oliver nodded. “Yeah.”

She’d guessed as much. If it was just some ordinary family, things wouldn’t be so complicated. Clearly, Ann had messed with someone way out of her league. And the Jenkins weren’t just anybody.

“Is there a way to fix it?” she asked.

Mr. Padilla looked up from his phone, his eyes settling on her. “Are you and Ann close?”

When they arrived at the Padilla estate, it was already eight thirty and the whole place was glowing with lights. Because the elders were waiting, Oliver arranged for a helicopter to bring them straight home, saving time and barely making it for dinner.

Everyone in the Padilla family was there except Colton. Dinner was all about the old patriarch. Now that he was getting up there in years, he loved seeing everyone together, loved the noise and the warmth of family. His two sons and daughter all brought their families, three full tables set in the traditional courtyard. Dozens of people filled the space, voices bouncing off the walls.

Sara drifted from table to table, sweet-talking the elders and making everyone laugh.

During dinner, some of the Brooks family kept their eyes on Patricia, sizing her up. She was stunning, but not the gentle, demure type. She gave off this energy like she could lean on you if she wanted, but she’d be just fine on her own, too. She had elegance, she had looks, and every move she made was graceful. Even when the old patriarch asked her questions, she answered with poise and intelligence.

Oliver was the last of his generation to get married. Before he settled down, everyone teased him, always asking what kind of fairy he was waiting for. Nobody thought he’d actually find someone like that. Sure, this fairy had a few rough spots in her past, but she carried herself in a way that suited the Padilla family perfectly. Quiet, steady, never flashy, the kind of calm that ran deep. She was exactly the kind of daughter-in-law the Padillas approved of.