He sighed, the cold gold cuff link brushing his left wrist as he pulled on the sleeve of his crisp white shirt.  Black tie events like this were as exhilirating as they were pretentious. When the elevator doors opened, Chanyeol was immediately escorted to the Grand Ballroom reserved exclusively for Deep Pockets.

The venue was already bustling with activity. He nodded at some of the businessmen in attendance, whom he had some dealings with at one time or another. He had never been formally friendly towards any of them. There were hardly young entrepreneurs in these gatherings. Consequently, aside from the , he found it difficult to truly connect with anyone.

He also found that he preferred it that way. 

He froze as he received a rather vigorous squeeze on the shoulder once he was led to his table. Chanyeol looked up to recognize Mancini, an Italian hotel tycoon in his forties, whom he had beaten a few times playing poker across Europe. Chanyeol forced a smile, as he recalled how much grievance he had caused the Italian and the small fortune Mancini had to fork over after that last momentous match in Monaco.

Mancini beamed at the strapping young Korean alpha beside him. “Friends, meet The Kid.”

The other seven contenders, of different nationalities, all older, assessed him dubiously.

However, Chanyeol was unfazed as a vague grin curled his lips.

He locked gazes with a tall, brooding alpha seated directly opposite him, lazily puffing on a Colombian tobacco.

“Chanyeol,” the alpha drawled, whose face was fogged by the smoke.

Yet Chanyeol didn’t need a clear sight of him.  Yifan even pronounced his name with a native accent.

“I’ve heard of you, kid,” Yifan spat out in English now, coughing a little as he set aside the half-spent tobacco. “Think you can maintain your reign in this club’s poker throne?”

The patronizing tone only fueled Chanyeol’s determination. “Let’s find out, shall we?”

Mancini laughed out loud. “Card dealer, game on!”

When the play started, it required each one’s absolute attention. Chanyeol was best at using his peripheral vision to observe his surroundings whilst keeping his eyes glued on the five cards on his hand. Since it was still the first play, he quickly figured the straight flush he had was good enough.

Please Subscribe to read the full chapter