“We have,” Tyler answered. “We accept the terms and conditions, barring a few minor changes, which I have already sent to your legal department but let’s get to the reason we’re all here…Negotiating the price.”
“There’s nothing to negotiate,” Alex clipped. “We own the most lucrative properties in Washington. Two hundred and fifty million is a steal.”
“I have to disagree with you on that one, Alex,” Tyler replied firmly.
“What are you proposing?” Timothy asked.
Tyler looked over at her. “Jordan will take us through it.”
Short. Short. Long.
Timothy seemed surprised that she would be doing the presentation, which was already a sign that he’d underestimated her. He’d probably expected her to sit there and take minutes.
“Missile,” Matthew whispered as she stood up.
And a missile she would be. This was a male-dominated board room and she needed to show them she could hold her own like one of the big boys. She switched on the projector and her presentation appeared on the screen behind her.
Short. Short. Long. “Good morning, gentlemen,” she said.
Now what? What was she supposed to say next? She had never been to one of these meetings before. Should she do a brief introduction, or get straight to the point? Charm them a bit, or be brutal with the cold, hard facts?
“So…after extensive analysis…” That was a dumb thing to say considering she only had two days to review the projections and they knew that. “I believe…that…the numbers are a little bit…exaggerated.”
Alex sneered as a sarcastic smirk curved on his lips. “Oh, really. And how did you figure that, Miss Shepard?”
She saw Matthew give Tyler a worried look and with the slightest movement of his hand, Tyler settled his friend. He then turned to Jordan and gave her an almost imperceptible nod of encouragement.
Jordan pushed her glasses up her nose and continued despite the nervous rock dropping deeper into the pit of her stomach. “Mister Partridge, per Hampton Homes’ annual report last year, you disclosed that rental properties are at about ninety percent occupancy. These projections are assuming a hundred percent occupancy and that—”
“Those projections were based on the assumption that Diamond Properties acquires Hampton Homes. Upon acquisition, doors open and synergies arise. Based on Diamond Properties’ excellent marketing strategies and expertise in the industry, we assume to fill the remaining ten percent with tenants. Are you suggesting that it’s an invalid assumption?”
That was, in fact, a very valid assumption and Jordan was at a loss for words. “Um…no…but…” She was making a royal mess of this. Alex Partridge was going to eat her alive and spit out her bones if she didn’t pull herself together.
“Miss Shepard,” he said with an arrogant, condescending tone, “you are in way over your head. This is an important deal.We are professional businessmen and it’s clear that what you have to say holds no value. Playtime is over. Can we get serious, gentlemen?”
She’d had about enough of this asshole. For a second she could have sworn she saw a flicker of a smile on Matthew’s face, but she was too annoyed to pay much attention.
“Okay, Mister Partridge. You want serious, here’s serious.” She switched off the projector and walked to the boardroom table. “Were youseriouswhen you projected that revenues would increase by fifteen percent per year when in the last ten years, rentals have never increased by more than eight percent? Even tenants in the upmarket apartments would not accept annual increases of that magnitude. Those growth margins are not only unsustainable, they are unattainablebecause the first time we introduce an increase of fifteen percent, our occupancy ratio will drop to less than ninety.” She noticed that his face had drained of color but this dickhead had brought this on himself. “In addition, Mister Partridge, discounting those projected cash flows with a weighted average cost of capital of seven point five percent was also a veryseriousmistake. It’s too low and hasn’t been adjusted for the risk profile of each individual building. What could alsoseriouslyaffect the price are the understated maintenance costs, which are in no way a proper reflection of actual costs incurred. Then there are the buildings in the Downtown area, where location has been completely disregarded because buildings in that region will never be able to fetch the price stated in the proposal. It is blatantly unrealistic. Now…” She leaned on the table, looking at Alex and him alone. “…Mister Partridge, taking into account everything I have said so far, do youseriouslyexpect us to pay two hundred and fifty million for your overpriced properties?”
The room was silent. Not a breath. Not a whisper. All she could hear was her heartbeat, a loud thumping in her ears.Maybe she had taken it too far. This was a negotiation. She wasn’t supposed to offend and insult them. Someone should have given her a quick run-down about what exactly the shock-and-awe tactic entailed. Why wasn’t anyone saying anything?
“My, my, my,” Timothy said, breaking the silence.
She looked up at him then. He looked impressed but his smile was forced and the cold look in his blue eyes told her he was pissed. Probably because she had figured out that they’d tried to weasel them out of millions of dollars with their inflated projections.
“Tyler, where have you been hiding this gem?”
Again, Tyler’s face twitched and his jaw tightened. “That’s not what we’re here to discuss.” He spoke with quiet calm, yet that in itself was intimidating.
As much as it sounded like a contradiction, he used a very passive approach to dominate a boardroom. Right now his eyes were locked on Timothy’s. Whether it was a warning or a dare, Jordan wasn’t sure, but Timothy was the one who eventually backed off.
“Alright.” He turned his attention back to her. “What’s your counter-offer, Miss Shepard?”
The nervousness returned immediately. She was just supposed to do the presentation. She wasn’t supposed to give the counter-offer. That wasn’t her decision to make. If she went too low, she would look like a fool and if she went too high, she could cost the company millions. She was just the accountant. She could give advice but big decisions were always made by Tyler. But he was just sitting there, not saying a word. Matthew also offered no help. He sat back with a wide grin on his face. They were both so fucking infuriating!
“Two hundred million,” she blurted out.
“That’s ridiculous!” Alex bit out with disdain. “That’s significantly lower than our asking price!”
