[What is this slander, this libel, this teasing-- Polnareff stares at Bruno, caught between laughter and indignance. He's never seen this kind of teasing from Bruno before-- at best, he's heard a few jokes, quiet and wry, but this is something else entirely.

(Oh boy, he thinks again, giddy and terrified both).]

Hey-- hey! You're building this boat with me, you can't use that against me-- that's practically our second child, don't use the boat against me. The jewelry doesn't count, that was just-- that takes like five minutes, it's not hard. Besides--

[His grin fades into a smile, something a little softer.]

I haven't had this much free time in years. You want the truth, I don't really know what to do with it.