75. Deal
"Never be embarrassed talking about money and asking for what you deserve." — Anne Robinson
Despite Paul being the only person who could provide the service Melted Cheese wanted, it gave him little power in their negotiations; the money the wealthy young woman was offering was exaggerated enough to even out any advantage.
"I understand it might not be ideal, but why don't you tell me what you can actually offer me? Since you agreed to meet me, I assume you are interested in the payment I am offering. Please allow me to understand what I would be getting for that price."
Half a million dollars was not a small amount of money, and many people would be willing to do all sorts of different outlandish things to obtain such a windfall. Paul was also very tempted, thinking that having a large chunk of cash could be very helpful for any number of things.