The Billionaire And His Son Want Me Back (Paisley) novel Chapter 161

At the sink, Paisley didn't take Nate's business card. She rarely accepted cards from strangers.

"We don't know each other," she replied politely but distantly.

Worried about leaving Serena alone for too long, Paisley quickly washed her hands, skipping the towel, and hurried off.

Nate seemed like he wanted to say something, but his phone rang, so he stepped away to take the call.

There was quite a distance between the restroom and the pavilion. Paisley had planned to take Serena with her, but she was having so much fun playing with the others that she had refused to go.

So, Paisley had entrusted the other parents to keep an eye on her.

Without her supervision, she had no idea what kind of mischief Serena might be up to. But before she could even get halfway back, the sharp sound of glass shattering made her heart drop.

Her pace quickened instinctively. When she arrived at the pavilion, all the parents were on their feet, crowding around the platform.

If she remembered correctly, that was where Vivian had placed her wine. Now, it was completely empty. The parents were murmuring in either regret or anger, all looking in the same direction.

As Paisley stepped closer, she saw the broken Cloud Crest Reserve on the ground, with more than half of the expensive wine still pooled among the glass shards. Serena stood to the side, quietly shedding tears.

"Rena!" Paisley pushed through the crowd, scooping her daughter up and away from the broken glass. "Tell me what happened."

Serena wiped her tears but only shook her head, refusing to speak. Paisley knew her daughter well—Serena wasn't one to cry easily unless something truly upsetting had happened.

The last time she cried this much was at the stables, when she thought Paisley was being bullied. She had sobbed and called those people bad guys.

But this time, she wasn't wailing, just silently shedding tears. There was grievance in her eyes, but also something Paisley couldn't quite decipher. Whatever it was, it made Paisley's heart ache.

"What else could've happened? Ms. Sutton, your daughter caused a huge mess!" Isabella sneered, her face full of schadenfreude.

'She broke such an expensive bottle of wine—there's no way you can afford to compensate for this!' she thought.

Paisley frowned and looked straight at Isabella. "Mrs. Thompson, please explain clearly. What exactly did my daughter do?"

"Isn't it obvious?" Isabella pointed at the shattered Cloud Crest Reserve on the floor. "Your daughter did it! Vivian was generous enough to share it with us, and your troublemaking daughter broke it. Now, tell us—how are you going to compensate for this?"

Her words resonated with the other parents. They all felt it was a shame—such a fine bottle of wine, wasted by a child. They hadn't even had enough to taste. Each person only got a tiny sip.

Paisley wasn't going to jump to conclusions based on one person's story. She turned to Serena, her voice gentle. "Rena, tell me—did you break this?"

"Ms. Sutton, what are you implying?" Vivian's face fell as she snapped, "Are you saying all of us adults are falsely accusing a child?"

Her heart ached at the loss of the wine. But she wasn't about to let Paisley off so easily. This was her chance to make Paisley pay—not just for the wine, but for daring to go after my husband!

But Paisley remained composed, meeting Vivian's gaze head-on. "The situation needs to be clarified first. If my daughter is responsible, I will take full responsibility."

"Obviously; otherwise, how could she be so beautiful yet unmarried with a kid?" another agreed.

"There are plenty of good-looking single mothers. Just because Ms. Sutton is one doesn't mean there's something wrong with her." Someone came to Paisley's defense.

"But isn't that exactly what Isabella said? She must know something to say that," another argued.

"Alright, Ms. Sutton, what do you think should be done about this?" Vivian coldly stared at Paisley.

Paisley ignored Vivian's questioning and continued to ask Serena, "Rena, tell mommy, did you break it?"

Still teary-eyed, Serena looked confused. "Mom, I'm sorry, I think I broke it."

In truth, she didn't know for sure if it was her fault. She only knew that she was crying at the time, her eyes blurry, and then she touched something next to her, and the bottle fell and broke.

Since everyone said it was her fault, it might really be. Paisley always said kids shouldn't lie and should admit their mistakes.

Seeing Serena confess, Paisley accepted it calmly, not making any excuses for her.

"Alright, since my daughter broke it, I'll compensate for the wine." She turned to Vivian, "Do you want me to pay money, or do you want a new bottle of wine?"

Vivian scoffed, as if she had heard the funniest thing. "Fine, then pay the money!"