“Thank you,” he said, rising from his chair. “You’ve given me a great deal to think about.”
Eleanor gestured toward the house. “Andrew will be back soon. You might want to freshen up before your meeting. There’s a guest room prepared for you inside.”
He nodded, slipping the ring back into his pocket. As he turned to go, Eleanor spoke again.
“Ronan.”
He paused, looking back.
“Sometimes the most successful negotiations are the ones where you’re willing to lose everything for the right reason.”
Later, he stood in Andrew Beauchamp’s study, watching the older man read through the documents he’d presented. The room exuded old money and power and the subtle scent of success.
Andrew looked up, setting the papers aside. “This is your proposal? To restructure the entire deal?”
“Yes.” He maintained eye contact.
“These terms are less favorable to Oath Capital than our original agreement.”
“Yes.”
“You’re offering me a larger stake for the same investment, with greater board representation and a stronger morality clause.” Andrew eyed him with interest. “Why?”
“Because it’s the offer I should have made from the beginning, based on the merits of the business, not on false impressions or manipulations.”
“And your investors will accept these terms? Your board?”
“They’ll have to.” He met Andrew’s gaze. “It’s my company. My decision.”
Andrew’s mouth twitched, the gesture unreadable. “Even if it costs you personal equity?”
“Even then.”
He tapped the papers, slow and measured. “My wife tells me you arrived early today. That you spent some time in her company.”
“I did.”
“Eleanor has always been an excellent judge of character.” Andrew’s tone was even, though his eyes told a different story. “She sees things I sometimes miss.”
He waited, sensing there was more.
“She believes you’ve learned a valuable lesson from this situation.”
“I have.”
“May I ask what?”
“That authentic connection is worth more than strategic advantage. That being seen—truly seen—by the right person changes everything.” He paused, feeling his way toward a truth he was beginning to understand. “That I’ve spent my life building an empire at the expense of building a life.”
Andrew nodded, as if he had confirmed an important truth. “And Ms. Sinclair? Where does she fit into this new understanding?”
“She’s essential to it,” he admitted. “But I may have realized that too late.”
“Have you?” Andrew rose from his desk and moved to the window, looking out over the grounds sloping down to the ocean. “I’ve found, over a lifetime in business, that it’s rarely too late to correct a mistake, provided one is willing to pay the full price of the correction.”
“I am.”
Andrew turned from the window, approval in his expression. “Then I believe we have a deal, Ronan.” He extended his hand. “The revised terms are acceptable.”
