Female Novel
Chapter 2141
Amiee was on her feet without a word, trailing behind them.
Emily eyed the cards in her hand, hesitating, while Charlie, ever the bold one, tossed anothercouple of chips into the pot.
Leaning close, Evelyn whispered to Estelle, "How much is one chip worth?"
"Two hundred," Estelle replied nonchalantly.
Evelyn's jaw dropped. She was sitting on something decent for a couple of rounds, but the price ofthe chips had her folding faster than a lawn chair at a barbecue.
Sylvia, confident as ever, matched the bet with two chips of her own.
Gabriel, perched right behind her, glanced at her hand and frowned. "You're betting withoutconsulting your advisor?"
Sylvia leaned in, whispering conspiratorially, "I've got a pair, that's not too shabby."
"Which pair?" Gabriel inquired, a hint of skepticism in his voice.
Sylvia pointed it out to him.
Gabriel just stared, speechless.
After a few more betting rounds, it was down to Sylvia and Amiee. Gabriel couldn't stand to watchany longer and quickly called for the reveal.
Amiee had a straight flush. Magdalen slapped the table, "Thank my lucky stars I got out early."
Curious, Estelle asked her, "What did you have?"
With a sly grin, Magdalen confessed, "A pair."
Estelle had a pair too, which is why she had bailed after two rounds.
"Sylvia, what's your hand?" Magdalen prodded, eager with curiosity.
All eyes turned to Sylvia, who had been quiet for so long. Perhaps she was the dark horse about tosurprise them all.
Sylvia proudly displayed her hand.
The room collectively facepalmed.
Sylvia beamed, "What's wrong, did I win?"
Estelle turned on Gabriel, "And what kind of advisor are you?"
Gabriel replied coolly, "Whatever she loses, I'll cover."
Sylvia glanced over at Gabriel, "Did I lose?"
He looked at her, deadpan, "That's the smallest hand in the deck."
Sylvia pouted, "Why didn't you say something sooner?"
Charlie wrapped an arm around Emily,"Looks like you aren't the only card novice in the room."
Magdalen couldn't help but laugh, "You kept betting all this time, I should've gone all-in against you."
Josiah scooped up the chips, "Lucky start, thanks everyone, and a special shout-out to Sylvia."
Timothy, seated next to Evelyn, chuckled lowly, "You had a good hand earlier, why'd you fold sosoon?"
Evelyn replied with a laugh, "The stakes were too high, I didn't dare go on."
"That's nothing," Timothy said, glancing over at Sylvia. "You play, I'll back you up. If you lose, it's onme; if you win, it's all yours." He settled in behind Evelyn, offering his support.
Evelyn immediately shook her head, "I couldn't possibly."
"It's all good, just a bit of fun money to keep things lively," Timothy assured her with a grin. "Think ofit as making friends."novelbin
Estelle's gaze swept over to Timothy, "No need to trouble yourself, Timothy. I'll cover Evelyn'schips."
None of the people in this room cared much about the money; the chips were just for kicks. Even ifEvelyn lost, Estelle wouldn't dream of letting her pay up.
As a newcomer to the group, Timothy, aware that Estelle was Jonathan's wife, stiffened with anewfound wariness, managing a strained smile, "Then I'll just help Evelyn with her hand."
Evelyn looked at Estelle, "It's okay, Mr. Anderson means well."
Estelle thought Evelyn might be mistaken, perhaps thinking Timothy was one of their crowd, but itwasn't the time to clarify. She simply nodded, letting it be.
Thankfully, with Estelle's presence, Timothy kept his distance, seriously helping Evelyn with hergame without getting too close.