Winds Carry Lost Promises by Asa Holt 149

Chapter 149 

Chapter 149 

Daron didn’t even glance at Joyce, not even when Kara started talking to her. He acted like she didn’t exist. 

Joyce felt a wave of relief wash over her, but deep down, she couldn’t help but feel a little bitter. 

After playing a card, Daron shot a quick look at Marina, who was quietly standing by and watching him play. Then he glanced up at the waiter. 

“Bring over a chair,” he said. 

“Yes, Mr. Zamora,” the waiter replied. 

The waiter quickly set a chair down beside Marina, then said respectfully, “Ms. Finley, please have a seat.” 

Marina thanked him softly and sat down next to Daron with poise. 

Every now and then, Daron would glance back and chat with her. 

Joyce’s gaze grew cold, a hint of irritation flickering in her eyes. 

Daron treated her as if she were invisible. He’d never ignored her like this before. 

Kara sat on the armrest of Finn’s chair, casually continuing to talk about the card game. 

Joyce’s expression stayed tense and unhappy, but she tried to maintain her composure, so her smile looked forced. 

“How much longer are you guys going to play?” Joyce asked. 

“Do you know which card you should play?” Daron said to Marina, completely ignoring Joyce. 

Finn was totally absorbed in his cards, keeping a close eye on Kara in case she tried to sneak a card from him and mess up his game, so he didn’t respond either. 

Just as Joyce’s face fell, Eric Grant, who was sitting across from Zachary, finally spoke up and answered her. 

“There are four rounds left. Why don’t you go relax on the sofa for a bit?” he suggested. 

Joyce gave a small nod and walked over to the sofa to sit down. 

Chloe chatted with Zachary for a bit, then walked over and sat down next to Joyce, making an effort to start a conversation. 

Her company still had a project going with the Milner Family, so even though she was annoyed with Joyce, she didn’t want things to get too awkward. 

Joyce was fuming inside and didn’t feel like talking to her at all. 

Chloe tried to make small talk, but Joyce did unwelcome, Chloe got up to leave. 

respond. Not wanting to keep forcing a conversation when it was clearly 

Joyce realized she was letting her emotions get the best of her and looked like a sore loser, so she reached out and grabbed Chloe’s hand. 

“Chloe, where are you going?” Joyce asked. 

Chloe gave a faint smile and replied softly, “You seem upset. I thought you might want some time alone.” 

Joyce pressed her lips together and said quietly. “No, I was just lost in thought.” 

11:33 Tue, Dec 30 JR 

Chapter 149 

Chloe raised an eyebrow but didn’t call her out. 

“That’s good,” she said. 

It was only natural for Joyce to be feeling down after losing money today. 

But Chloe was never one to hang out with clueless people. 

She used to think Joyce had some brains, but now it looked like she wasn’t anything special after all. 

Joyce let out a silent sigh and didn’t say another word, but she couldn’t help glancing over at Marina and Daron. 

At some point, Daron scooted over and let Marina take his spot, playing cards in his place. 

He just stood off to the side, coaching her. 

Seeing this, Joyce took a deep breath, her emotions churning inside. 

Chloe shot her a subtle glance, saying nothing. 

The Milner and Zamora families hadn’t even finalized the engagement, but Joyce was already acting way too possessive over Daron. 

The four rounds finished up quickly. 

As Daron got up, he gave Marina a hand and helped her to her feet. 

Daron had actually been losing some chips when Marina arrived. 

But as soon as she took over, she turned the tables and snatched victory. 

Zachary had been pretty much breaking even, but ended up losing a bit and started howling in protest. 

“Daron, that’s not fair! You switched players in the last few rounds and totally changed the luck of the game,” he whined. 

Daron replied casually, “Next time, you can bring someone to switch out too.” 

Zachary just stared at him, lost for words. 

“Fine, next time I’ll bring two people!” he shot back. 

Daron said flatly, “Bring three if you want. You’ll still lose.” 

Finn, the big winner, called out to Zachary, “You knew what you were getting into. Take your loss like a man and quit whining like a sore loser.” 

Joyce, sitting nearby, felt the sting of Finn’s words. Her face, which had just started to soften, instantly clouded over again. 

After counting up the chips, Daron said in a low voice to Marina, “Don’t just stand there. Get your account out and let them transfer the money.” 

Marina paused, then gave an awkward smile. “Isn’t that kind of rude?” 

As she spoke, she tapped her phone and brought up her account. 

Daron saw her acting like a little money fiend, and a subtle smile played on his lips. 

Zachary pulled out his phone and sent the money to Marina, grinning as he did. 

11:33 Tue, Dec 30 R 

Chapter 149 

“What’s wrong with that? You won fair and square. Honestly, when you took over, Daron was still losing, so he should be paying you too.” 

Daron rubbed his forehead with a laugh, realizing Zachary was trying to rope him in. He wasn’t stingy, so he pulled out his phone. “Alright, I’ll send it.” 

Marina saw Daron about to scan her code and quickly covered it with her hand. 

“No need,” she said. 

After all, she’d already benefited from Daron’s generosity today. 

Zachary jumped in, “Come on, Marina, don’t be biased. If you won’t take his money, you shouldn’t take ours either.” 

Daron just brushed her hand aside and sent her 60 thousand dollars. 

Only then did Zachary finally feel satisfied. 

Marina stared at the notification as the money landed in her account. She could barely contain her exciter 

She’d been seriously short on cash lately, so scoring this much today was a total surprise. 

Her card game skills were actually forged back when she was investing in Verbola, spending hours playing with those rich ladies. 

For them, card games were basically their only hobby. They played almost every day. At first, Marina got wiped out over and 

over. 

Joyce, with her pampered background, was nowhere near a match for those seasoned players. 

Seizing the moment, Kara flashed her account on her phone and shot Finn a playful, puppy–eyed look. 

“Finn, Daron let Marina collect her winnings. Can I cash in too? Come on, be a good brother!” 

Finn couldn’t help but laugh. “What are you, a highway robber now?” 

Kara pouted. “Nope, I’m just a charity case. Even Joyce noticed how broke I am lately. How come you never did?” 

Joyce was speechless. 

‘I just blurted out the wrong thing, and now Kara’s really holding it against me, huh?‘ Joyce thought. 

Finn sighed, giving in. “Alright, go ahead and take it. Guess I’m your employee today.” 

Kara’s face bloomed into a huge, happy grin. 

“Thanks for the rescue, big bro!” she chirped. 

her face 

Marina caught the venomous look Joyce shot her way, and a sly grin curled on her lips. She turned to Daron, her face lighting up. “Thanks for the help, Daron.” 

‘She was throwing shade at me earlier in the other room, Marina thought. 

‘Since she’s so obsessed with Daron, I know exactly how to push her buttons. Bring it on, let’s see who can play this game better, Marina thought. 

For once, Daron didn’t make any snarky remarks. 

“You won on your own. Why thank me?” he said. 

11:33 Tue, Dec 30 JR 

Chapter 149 

“How’d you do carlier?” he asked. 

Marina waved her phone around, grinning from ear to ear. “I’m the big winner!” 

Daron raised an eyebrow. “Not bad.” 

Kara leaned in and held up two fingers. 

“Marina just scored 200 chips. That’s a cool three million dollars!” she announced. 

Zachary had only caught one round earlier and had no clue the stakes were this high. His jaw dropped 

“You guys were playing for that much?” 

They only ever went that big when it was a high–stakes business game. 

Normally, when the guys played for fun, nobody ever won or lost more than a million. 

Kara chimed in playfully. 

“Is that a lot? Joyce said this was just small stakes. Marina and I were so on edge, we just tried to win as fast as we could and make a quick getaway.” 

Joyce got called out by Kara again, and her poker face almost slipped. 

Zachary looked genuinely surprised. 

“Seriously? I never pegged Joyce as someone who’d play for stakes that high. It’s fine to go big once in a while, but if you keep doing it, it’ll really drain your resources,” he said. 

The Milner Family’s profits had been dropping steadily for years. 

By the end of last year, the Gross Family’s earnings had actually outpaced the Milners by a whopping 50%. 

Even when a titan falls, it’s still bigger than most, but when a big family goes down, a lot of folks get caught up in the mess. 

The Grant family was still working with the Milners. 

Zachary wasn’t trying to stir anything up. He just figured they were all friends, so he thought he’d give her a heads–up. 

Joyce just muttered a low “mm,” feeling totally at a loss for words. 

She shot Kara a sideways look, but Finn caught it instantly. All Joyce could do was give a helpless, forced smile. 

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