(Author's POV)
Sebastian sat across from his father and his brother in the study and said he'd go through with it - the arranged marriage, the alliance, whatever it took. He said it the way people say things when they've already decided and just need someone to hear them.
Richard handled the negotiations himself. It went badly from the first meeting.
The other family had been watching the Rathbones for months. They knew exactly how much pressure Everett Global had been applying, and they came to the table with that knowledge in their pocket. Their terms were not generous. If the Rathbones wanted the alliance - if they wanted any protection at all - the Rathbone Group would be absorbed into their holdings and restructured as a subsidiary. Not a merger. An acquisition with a handshake and
