Mom Said ‘Skip Christmas – Your Cousin’s Husband Thinks You’re A Failure’ – Then He Walked Into …
“Then bring them to Conference Room A.”
I looked at my team.
“Remember, this is an acquisition, not a takeover. We’re evaluating cultural fit as much as financial fit. Professional, respectful, but firm on our requirements.”
They nodded. This was our 12th acquisition; we knew the dance.
“And Catherine,”
I added,
“When Michael Chun enters, watch his face. That’s my cousin’s husband.”
Catherine grinned.
“I wouldn’t miss this for anything.”
At exactly 10:00 a.m., the conference room door opened. Michael Chun walked in first with an expensive suit and the confident stride and bearing of someone who’d been successful long enough to take it for granted.
Behind him came four colleagues, two men and two women, all carrying briefcases and tablets. Michael’s eyes swept the room, taking in our team seated along the far side of the table.
His gaze moved past Thomas, past Linda, past James, and past Catherine, and landed on me at the head of the table. His briefcase hit the floor with a heavy thud.
“Hello, Michael,”
I said calmly.
“Thank you for coming. Please have a seat.”
His face went through a remarkable series of expressions: confusion, recognition, disbelief, then a dawning horror as he understood what was happening.
“Rachel?”
he said weakly.
“It’s Miss Porter in this context,”
Catherine said smoothly.
“Welcome to Data Bridge Analytics. I’m Catherine Santos, Head of Mergers and Acquisitions. We spoke on the phone.”
Michael’s colleagues were staring at him, confused by his reaction. One of them, a woman in her 40s, stepped forward.
“I’m Susan Martinez, Westfield CFO. We’re pleased to be here.”
“Please sit,”
I gestured to the chairs across from us.
“We have a lot to cover today.”
Michael remained frozen. His colleagues exchanged glances, then moved to take their seats.
Finally, Michael bent to pick up his briefcase and sat down mechanically, his eyes never leaving my face.
“Let’s begin with introductions,”
I said.
“I’m Rachel Porter, CEO and founder of Data Bridge Analytics. To my left is Thomas Wright, our CFO; Linda Okoye, our Chief Technology Officer; James Morrison, General Counsel; and you’ve spoken with Katherine Santos, who’s been leading this acquisition process.”
I looked at Michael.
“Would you like to introduce your team?”
He opened his mouth, closed it, and opened it again.
“I… yes. I’m Michael Chun, VP of Operations at Westfield Analytics.”
“We know,”
Catherine said helpfully.
“Your reputation precedes you.”
Michael’s face flushed red. Susan jumped in, introducing the rest of the Westfield team.
Throughout the introductions, Michael sat rigidly, his knuckles white on the edge of the table.
“Excellent,”
I said when introductions concluded.
“Thomas, why don’t you walk us through the financial structure of the proposed acquisition?”
Performance and Accountability
For the next hour, we presented our acquisition offer. Thomas explained the financial terms—an all-cash offer of $180 million for Westfield Analytics with performance bonuses tied to successful integration.
Linda demonstrated our technology platform, showing exactly how Westfield’s traditional analytics would be transformed by our AI-driven insights engine. Catherine outlined the integration timeline, and James covered the legal framework.
Through it all, Michael sat silent. His colleagues asked intelligent questions, took notes, and seemed genuinely impressed by our capabilities and the generous terms, but Michael said nothing.
Finally, Susan turned to him.
“Michael, you’ve been quiet. You’re our operations expert. What do you think about the integration timeline?”
Michael cleared his throat.
“I… the timeline seems aggressive.”
“Aggressive?”
Linda repeated.
“We’ve successfully integrated 11 companies in the past three years. Our average integration time is eight months. We’re proposing 12 months for Westfield, given your size. That’s conservative.”
“But our systems are complex,”
Michael said.
“We can’t just replace everything.”
“We’re not replacing everything,”
Linda said patiently.
“We’re enhancing what works and modernizing what doesn’t. Your client relationships remain intact. Your team keeps their expertise. We’re adding tools that make them more effective.”
“But what if the clients don’t want to change?”
Michael pressed.
“Then they’ll fall behind their competitors who are using better tools,”
I said quietly.
“Change isn’t optional in this industry, Michael. You know that.”
He looked at me, really looked at me for the first time since sitting down.
“How long have you been doing this?”
“Data Bridge has been operational for four years,”
I said.
“Before that, I spent three years building the foundation—the algorithms, the client relationships, the team.”
“Seven years,”
he said.
“You’ve been doing this for seven years.”
“Yes. And you never mentioned it to Jessica? To the family?”
“You never asked,”
I said simply.
Susan was looking between us with growing comprehension.
“Wait, do you two know each other?”
“Rachel is my wife’s cousin,”
Michael said, his voice hollow.
“Oh,”
Susan said. Then,
“Oh.”
An uncomfortable silence settled over the room. Catherine broke it.
“Perhaps we should take a 15-minute break. Give everyone a chance to review the materials, use the restroom, grab some coffee.”
“Good idea,”
I said.
“We’ll reconvene at 11:45.”
My team filed out first. Westfield’s team followed, except for Michael, who remained seated.
When the room was empty except for the two of us, he finally spoke.
“Jessica told me you were struggling. That you were working some low-level job and barely making rent.”
“I know what Jessica thinks,”
I said.
“Why didn’t you correct her?”
I looked at him directly.
“Michael, in the seven years you’ve been married to my cousin, how many times have you asked me about my work?”
He blinked.
“I… we’ve talked at family gatherings.”
“You’ve talked at me,”
I corrected.
“About your promotions, your bonuses, your vacation homes. You’ve explained the analytics industry to me—the industry I’ve been working in longer than you have. You’ve given me career advice based on assumptions about my situation that you never verified.”
His face reddened.
