Asher froze at the name coming from Kael's phone.
Damian.
Damian Cross. CEO of CrossTech Corporation.
"No, I told you the merger terms are non-negotiable... I don't care what your investors want... Damian, we've been over this..."
Kael's voice was hard, unyielding. A side of him Asher hadn't seen before—the ruthless businessman.
"I'll have my team send over our final offer," Kael continued, his jaw clenched. "Take it or leave it. We're not budging... Fine. Yes. Goodbye."
He ended the call and rubbed his temples, looking exhausted.
"Sorry about that. Difficult negotiations with a potential business partner."
"CrossTech?" Asher asked before he could think better of it.
"You know about that?"
"It was in the company newsletter. Potential merger."
"Right. Well, their CEO is..." Kael searched for words. "Challenging. He wants control of everything or he walks away. It's making the process unnecessarily complicated."
"Will the merger go through?"
