Running Wilde (The Winnie Wilde Series Book 1) Read Online Free PDF Page A

going over the list, prioritizing it and talking paint colors.”
    They sat at a table in a sunny corner of her kitchen. Ben was all business and talked about the job. He would start with the repair jobs and finish with the rooms she wanted painted. “Have you picked out a paint color for your laundry room?”
    She shook her head. “Not yet, but I’d like to stick close to what it is now. I don’t think that room has been painted since we moved in here twenty years ago. Same with the kids’ bath upstairs.”
    “How about I start on these plumbing repairs first and you can work on picking out paint colors?”
    “Will you be doing all this by yourself?” Winnie asked before taking a sip of her coffee. She was trying hard not to stare into his incredible eyes.
    “Pretty much,” he said, giving her a shy smile that made her stomach clench. “The repairs are mostly handyman stuff, but if I get into a bind, I can call in some help. Dad and I mostly do small home remodeling jobs. We have two people who work for us. Right now the crew is working on the home remodel from hell. It was supposed to be over by now, but the owner keeps changing her mind about things and the project is about two weeks behind.”
    Winnie looked out the window at the pool. “My husband left about two years ago,” she told him. “He used to take care of anything that had to do with home repair, but since then, I’m afraid I’ve let a lot of it go. If I didn’t have a gardener and a pool guy, the whole place would be in ruins.”
    “So your husband was handy around the house?”
    “Ex-husband now,” she corrected, looking at him again. “And he was very handy at calling people like you and your father to come fix things. Edward wouldn’t so much as hang a picture and hated it when I tried to do stuff on my own, so I never did. Neither did our children. I’m afraid they follow more in Edward’s footsteps on things like that.” She sighed and looked back out at the pool. “My late father was quite good around the house, but I never learned. I wish I had.”
    “Hang around me and I’ll give you some tips.” He winked at her, and she wondered exactly what tips he meant. “Do you at least have a home tool box?”
    “We have a few small tools in a drawer in the laundry room,” she answered, getting her mind back on home repair. “Probably just a hammer and a few screwdrivers, stuff like that.”
    “It’s a start. I’ll check it out and before we’re done, we’ll make sure you have at least some minor knowledge of home repair and the proper tools.” He paused, then added, “If you’d like that.”
    She looked into his eyes and smiled. “I would,” she said, then blushed and looked away, wondering if it really was home repair and household tools they were agreeing on. At least that’s not where her mind jumped. “But I’m selling the house and doing some traveling,” she added quickly, “so I don’t know what good a tool box will do me.”
    “Everyone, man or woman, should have a basic working knowledge of do-it-yourself repairs. You never know when you’ll need it and a handyman might not always be available.” She immediately thought about the gift from Kathy. It was quickly becoming a common tool in her home. When Ben gave her another killer smile, she wondered if he could read her mind. She turned away before she licked her lips.
    “So where and when are you traveling?” he asked.
    Winnie, glad to get the topic away from handymen, tools, and jobs that needed them, said, “I haven’t set a date yet. I’d like to get the house sold first, but if it doesn’t, I might still take off. I’m going on an extended trip to visit old friends, some family, and to see some of the country. Something I’ve always wanted to do.”
    “I’ve been fortunate to have seen a lot of it,” Ben told her. “After college, a buddy and I bounced around for several months. We even made it up to Alaska. What’s your first