“Not really,” I say.
He snorts. “Your fathers hated each other.” He looks at Josh. “Your father would be so disappointed.”
Josh flinches like Seb just struck him and my anger rises. “That’s not true,” I snap. “That might’ve disliked each other, but he wouldn’t have been disappointed, not if Josh was happy.”
Seb laughs. “You didn’t know his father.”
“And I suspect you didn’t either.” I glare at the nasty old man. “What do you want?”
He laughs again, clearly delighted by my anger. “I want what Guava wanted,” he says.
“We’re not in the car washing business.” Josh tilts his head. “And I doubt you could afford us, even if we were.”
Seb turns a vicious grin back to Josh. “I wonder. What did you get out of Guava? I know what he got from you. I just can’t imagine what the price was.”
“Doesn’t matter. If that’s all we’re here for, this meeting can be over right now.”
He holds up a hand. “Wait.”
Josh cocks his head. “I’m waiting.”
“I see this meeting didn’t get off to a good start. Listen, Josh. I understand you want something from the board, but I can’t figure out what that something is just yet, and things at Cork are rather… fluid right now.”
“Meaning, Cork isn’t doing as well as you hoped,” I say with a little malice.
Josh glances at me with a frown, but doesn’t speak up.
Seb nods once. “That’s right. I can’t deny it, not even to the daughter of my enemy.”
“My father isn’t your enemy,” I say with a sigh. “It’s just business.”
“Yes, what a wonderful excuse.” Seb looks back to Josh. “What are you searching for? I’ll be straight with you and say that I’m in the market for favors right now. We might be able to make a deal, of sorts.”
Josh hesitates. I can tell he’s wrestling with this. We talked a little about it on the car ride over. If we tell Seb about getting board approval for the merger, then Seb will be able to move against us, making our lives that much harder.
But if he really does want something… he could make the whole thing happen.
Everything hinges on this moment. Either way, it’s a gamble.
“We want to merge Cork Electric with Bushings Telecom,” Josh says, making his wager.
The room falls silent as Seb stares at him. Nobody moves and I can feel my breath coming in heavy and fast. My fingers dig into the cheap fake leather armrests of my chair and I feel like I want to get up and run out of there. But finally, Seb starts to smile. “I shouldn’t be surprised,” he says.
“Why’s that?” Josh asks.
“Because you married her.”
“Or because it’s a good business decision.” Josh tilts his head and glares back at Seb. “You know as well as anyone that Cork can’t last forever in this climate. The big guys will swallow us up sooner or later, and if we don’t do anything about it now, we’ll disappear.”
“Might not be so bad,” he mused. “You know, we’d all likely make a lot of money on that sale.”
“Maybe. But the company would be gone, and any future we might’ve had would be gone with it.”
Seb leans back in his chair and gestures with both hands at the office around him. “Josh, I’m old. My future isn’t as long or as bright as yours is. You want to save this company for yourself, but for most of the board, we’re tired. Businesses don’t last forever.”
“They can.” Josh stares him down. “You know this is a good idea.”
Seb sighs and looks at me. “What do you think?” he asks. “You seem like you’re a big part of this yourself.”
“I know my father wants it,” I say. “And I know he thinks it’s vital to both companies. It never would’ve happened with Josh’s father, but now that Josh is in charge, it has a real chance.”
Seb grunts. “True. His father never would’ve given up power to merge with… the enemy.”
I roll my eyes. “We’re not enemies,” I say. “We’re competitors. And sometimes, competitors become allies when there’s bigger fish in the pond.”
Seb smiles and nods slowly. “Yes, that’s true.”
“What can we do for you, Seb?” Josh asks. “You didn’t invite us here without wanting something.”
“I’ll admit,” Seb says, “I was curious when I heard about you and Guava. I figured you wanted him to sell shares or something of that nature.”
“Didn’t expect this?” Josh arches an eyebrow. “I thought you knew everything.”
“Guess not.” Seb looks at him, a little smile on his lips. “I’ll say this. I’m not entirely against this plan.”
Josh glances at me. “Okay,” he says. “That’s a start. But it leaves me with the same question. What do you want?”
“There’s only one thing I want,” Seb says. “I’m an old man and I’m thinking about my future. If I’m going to live fat and happy, I’m going to need money.”