Sarah and Todd Palin Shoot Down Divorce Rumors

Sarah isn't amused, but Todd's "good about laughing some of that stuff off," she says

Photo: Anchorage Daily News/MCT/Landov

A tabloid report that Sarah and Todd Palin were on the verge of a $20-million divorce settlement had her steaming – and him chuckling – the former vice-presidential candidate tells PEOPLE in its new issue.

“I call Todd on the cell phone [from the grocery checkout] and I say, ‘Todd, you won’t believe this cover!’ And he says, ‘Twenty million? Write me a check,’ ” Palin recounts. “He’s good about laughing some of that stuff off.”

The couple, who opened their home to Survivor creator Mark Burnett for a new adventure series debuting on TLC this Sunday night, spent two days talking to PEOPLE during extensive at-home interviews.

“Our whole life is under a microscope,” Todd says, explaining the decision to do the series Sarah Palin’s Alaska. “We wanted to showcase Alaska. It will be a positive thing.”

For much more from the Palins – including the first look inside Todd’s role in Palin’s political work and how they are spending their new earnings – pick up the new issue of PEOPLE, on newsstands Friday