From Forgotten Wife To Fierce Queen - Chapter 26: Chapter 26

Paisley glanced up at Grayson, who was standing not far away, staring blankly at a tree. She then turned to Serena and asked, "Aren't you playing with Grayson? What are you doing over here with me?"
Serena pursed her lips awkwardly before replying, "I was not playing with him."
Paisley nodded, thinking, 'Oh, geez. Both of them are so stubborn.'
Serena fidgeted awkwardly for a moment before grabbing Paisley's hand and pulling her toward Grayson. They stopped in front of a tree, and Serena said, "Mom, come help us check this out."
Paisley saw that the tree wasn't particularly tall, and its leaves were still green. Hanging from its branches were long, pod-like fruits.
Serena pointed at the pods and said, "Mom, Grayson said these are green beans. Can we pick some and take them home to eat?" Her eyes sparkled with excitement as she stared at the pods, already imagining them as part of Maria's green bean salad, her favorite dish.
Paisley looked at the tree and couldn't help but chuckle, "Nope, these aren't green beans."
"They're not?" Serena's disappointment was obvious.
Meanwhile, Grayson scratched his head, looking puzzled. He'd eaten green beans before, and these looked pretty similar to him.
Paisley crouched down and patiently explained to the kids, "This is a Catalpa tree. Those long pods are its fruit, and they're actually used in medicine."
The mention of medicine made Serena scrunch up her face in distaste. "Medicine?"
Grayson, on the other hand, looked intrigued. "What kind of medicine?"
Paisley was a bit surprised by his interest but continued, "Catalpa trees usually flower in May or June and bear fruit in October or November.
"The pods can help with water retention and swelling. The leaves can cool fevers, detoxify, and even stop itching. The bark also has medicinal value. It's a pretty amazing tree if I say so."
Grayson hadn't expected such a plain-looking tree to have so many uses.
"Mom, can we eat those little fruits?" Serena asked again.
Paisley glanced at the plant Serena had called "little fruits" and chuckled. "You can eat them, but they're poisonous," Paisley replied with a teasing smile.
"What?" Serena exclaimed, taking a step back in alarm.
Paisley explained further, "That's nightshade. It's another medicinal plant that helps with bruises, swelling, and detoxifying the body. But kids should never pick or eat it—it's toxic."
"Oh... I see," Serena said, letting out a breath of relief.
Grayson also looked enlightened, nodding as if it all made sense now. He glanced at Paisley with newfound admiration, his eyes sparkling with curiosity. "I didn't know you knew so much about this stuff."
This time, his tone was no longer skeptical. Instead, it carried a note of surprise and even excitement.
Serena stuck out her lower lip proudly and said, "My mom knows everything. She's practically a walking encyclopedia." The way she beamed with pride made Grayson stay quiet, unsure how to respond.
Checking the time, Paisley remembered Emery mentioning that Teddy would be dropping something off soon. Paisley said, "It's getting late. Let's head back." Turning to Grayson, she added, "Your dad should be here any minute to pick you up. Let's go get your things ready."
Grayson nodded without saying a word. Then, he quietly followed Paisley as they walked back to her home.
As they strolled, Serena pointed to a tree and asked, "Mom, what's that tree called?"
"That's an elm," Paisley replied.
Serena pointed at another one. "What about that one?"
"That's a ginkgo," Paisley answered.
Grayson chimed in curiously, "Can it be used as medicine?"
Paisley explained, "Both ginkgo fruits and leaves can be, but we can't just pick and eat them. They can be toxic."
Grayson nodded repeatedly while Serena acted like she'd seen a ghost, keeping as far away from the fallen ginkgo leaves as possible. Paisley couldn't help but laugh at the sight, caught between a mix of exasperation and amusement.
The three of them continued walking home, learning about trees along the way. Before they knew it, they were standing outside Paisley's apartment building.
Still reluctant to end the outing, Serena asked, "Mom, when can we go to the park again?"
Paisley could tell that when Serena said "we", she included Grayson. Although he didn't say anything, the look in his eyes mirrored Serena's eager anticipation.
Just then, a woman's voice came from ahead. "Sonny."
Grayson froze for a moment before his eyes lit up. He turned and ran toward the voice. "Marissa."
Marissa had been waiting downstairs at Paisley's apartment for quite a while now. She'd been planning to wait for Dominick so they could pick up Grayson together, creating the illusion that they were united as a couple.
What Marissa hadn't anticipated was Paisley showing up with two kids in tow, catching her standing there alone. Even more unexpected was the sight of Grayson obediently walking next to Paisley, looking at her with so much trust and expectation.
In her relationship with Dominick, Marissa's biggest leverage had always been Grayson's dependence on her. She knew that if she lost that, marrying Dominick would become almost impossible. So, she couldn't—and wouldn't—let that happen. Thankfully, when she called out Grayson's name, he immediately ran to her.
Marissa's face broke into her usual bright smile as she hugged Grayson affectionately. He grinned and asked excitedly, "Did you come to pick me up, Marissa?"
"That's right. I came to pick you up and take you home," Marissa replied, nodding. Then, catching sight of Paisley approaching from the corner of her eye, she deliberately asked, "Have you missed me these past couple of days, Sonny?"
Grayson hesitated for a brief moment but then answered firmly, "Yes." After that, he buried his face in Marissa's embrace, hiding his guilt.
The truth was, he only thought about Marissa on the first day he arrived. In the days that followed, he hadn't thought about her at all. But he knew he couldn't say that—it would hurt her feelings.
Grayson felt like she treated him just like a real mom would, and he couldn't bear to make her sad.
Marissa secretly let out a sigh of relief. She had noticed the brief hesitation in Grayson's response just now, but fortunately, his answer and behavior satisfied her. At least, from Paisley's perspective, he still seemed closer to her.
Marissa then continued, "Have you been behaving yourself at someone else's house?"
Grayson was genuinely unsure how to answer her. He pondered, 'I probably haven't been that well-behaved... I even threw a tantrum this morning.' Unable to respond, he could only glance at Paisley, looking to her for help.
Paisley hadn't expected to see Marissa downstairs at her place, but she wasn't particularly surprised either. After all, with Marissa and Dominick about to get married, Paisley figured it wasn't unreasonable for Marissa to come pick up the child in his place.
At that moment, Paisley watched them interact, looking like a real mother and son, but she felt no particular emotion. If this had happened four years ago, it might have broken her—she might have crumbled, fallen apart, or pushed Marissa away from her child.
But now, Paisley wouldn't react. She had long since moved on from the emotions she'd once poured out. Even if Grayson were to call Marissa Mom now, she wouldn't feel a thing.
Noticing that Paisley didn't react as she had anticipated, Marissa was slightly disappointed. She straightened up, still holding Grayson's hand, and smiled, "Dom's coming back today, so I came early to pick up Sonny. Thank you for looking after him these past few days, Ms. Sutton."
Paisley raised an eyebrow slightly, finding Marissa's behavior at this moment a bit contrived. So, instead of playing along, Paisley replied in a calm, detached tone, "Since you're here, I'll hand the child over to you then. His stuff is still upstairs. Wait here, and I'll bring them down."
The implication in Paisley's words was clear—don't bother coming up to her place.
Marissa naturally caught on, and her eyes flickered briefly. But she maintained her smile and replied, "I'll have to trouble you with that then."
Soon after, Paisley brought Grayson's belongings down and handed them to Marissa. "That's all from me. I'll head back now. Take care."
Paisley couldn't care less about pretending to get along with Marissa. She hadn't thought highly of Marissa before, and now she had even more disdain.
What Paisley truly hated, though, was the version of herself from back then—the one who let Marissa push her to the edge, breaking her down and making her lose her sanity.
Seeing that Paisley was about to leave without even sparing him a glance, Grayson grew anxious and instinctively took two steps toward her. Marissa naturally noticed this, her expression darkening as she pulled him back.
"Ms. Sutton, wait a moment," Marissa called out to Paisley. Then, turning to Grayson, Marissa said, "Go wait for me in the car, Sonny." She clearly had something to say to Paisley that she didn't want Grayson to hear.