“Oh, Boone,” Amelia said, clearly angry. “Don’t be ridiculous.” Carson let out a bark of laughter, quickly stifled, and Boone could feel his cheeks flush with almost painful humiliation. What a fool he was to say such a thing. “My outburst was meant to be rhetorical,” Lord Hollings said thoughtfully. “I was just…I don’t know what I was thinking,” Boone said, nearly wincing at how absurd he sounded. “Boone saves things,” Amelia said, staring at him. “He has a three-legged dog and a one-eyed cat. He’s nice.” She said the last as if it were some sort of horrible affliction. All Boone felt was intense relief that Amelia hadn’t taken his proposal seriously, that she’d thought he was simply trying to save her from a desperate situation. It would be far worse if she knew the truth. “Nice is good,” the countess said, looking amused. “I don’t need saving,” Amelia said, even though everyone in the room would’ve disagreed. “I think we’ve discussed the situation enough for now.
