Chapter 472

Wayne couldn't stand the sight of Joshua being so smug, but he had to admit the latter was right. Joanne and Queenie were best friends—Joshua had Queenie wrapped around his finger, yet Wayne could barely even speak to Joanne. In fact, she could refute him and render him speechless. The realization made him feel a little ashamed. Dinner at The Palm Diner lasted until past 9:00 pm. It was time for the next activity Vincent had planned, so everyone moved to the bar. Joshua wanted to say he wasn't going to join—Queenie had texted him to say she was about to head home. However, the people at the gathering were friends he had grown up with. He would be a buzzkill if he were to leave halfway. So, he joined everyone at the bar they frequented. The bar was one of Morgan's private establishments in Espenia. When the group arrived, they headed to the SVIP private room on the top floor. It was always reserved for them. No one other than the cleaner would enter it. Someone had already turned on the heat in the room before the group arrived. The room was dimly lit; the group gathered inside. Some played poker, and others sat while chatting and drinking. Wayne joined the poker group while Yasmin sat quietly in a corner. She seemed out of place. Andy could tell she wasn't in a good mood—she'd been glum the whole night. So, he arranged for everyone to play a game. Yasmin wasn't in the mood for that. She'd noticed Joshua constantly checking his phone when they were at The Palm Diner. Even now, he didn't let his phone leave his sight. It went without saying who he was texting. Andy invited her to join the game, but she approached Joshua and said, "It's not every day that Andy comes to Espenia, and we don't get to meet all the time. Stop playing with your phone, Josh. Let's join the game." She pulled him to his feet and dragged him to join the others as she spoke. Joshua thought it would be rude to turn her down, so he joined everyone as they sat around a table. There was an empty bottle on it—it looked like they were going to play a classic game of truth or dare. They did this every year. It wasn't novel, but it satisfied everyone's desire for some excitement. Everyone gathered around. Vincent would be the first to spin the bottle since he'd organized the gathering. Everyone's gazes landed on the bottle as it spun and slowed. When it stopped, the mouth of the bottle pointed at Andy. He'd always had bad luck when it came to games, but he didn't expect to be the first victim. "Pick your poison—truth or dare?" Vincent would think of the question or dare since he was the one who'd spun the bottle. "Go big, or go home. I pick truth!" Andy went all out. They were here for fun, so he had to hype things up. Vincent wouldn't make things too hard for him. "Tell us why you're really in Espenia." Everyone present knew why Andy had come to Espenia to oversee the new branch company. Vincent had deliberately asked this question to remind Yasmin that Andy was a better match for her than Joshua was. "You're asking something to which you already know the answer, my dearest brother-in-law." Andy looked at Vincent before glancing at Yasmin, who sat beside Vincent. In the past, she would've gotten mad at this point. Today, however, she was abnormally calm. She glanced at Andy and said, "You're getting ahead of yourself. How do you know you'll be able to marry a daughter of the Hooper family? I'll have you know that I'm no longer the Hooper family's only daughter at the right age for marriage."