The entire sales hall went dead silent.
For a long heartbeat, the only sound echoing through the room was Matthew Powell’s calm, unwavering voice:
“I’m buying the whole floor.”
Every head turned. Every gaze locked onto him. It was as if time itself had frozen—dozens of people staring at him and Sarah Lacy like they were performers who had just gone completely off script. Mouths hung open. Expressions froze mid-motion.
No one spoke. No one even dared to breathe too loudly.
No one knew how long that silence lasted—one second, five, ten. Then, suddenly, Melissa Sink doubled over, clutching her stomach as wild laughter burst out of her.
“Hahahaha! That’s the funniest thing I’ve heard all year!” she gasped between fits of laughter. “Old man, you really don’t pay taxes on bragging, do you?
