Running Wilde (The Winnie Wilde Series Book 1) by Sue Ann Jaffarian, Meg Chambers

to stay behind.
    She found Edward inspecting Tiffany’s newly painted bedroom, then he went into Chet’s. He pushed past Winnie when she demanded to know what he was doing. He went from room to room, inspecting.
    “Edward, you can’t barge in here like this,” she said following him. “Tiffany said you wanted your treadmill, so take it, but in the future call first.”
    Still silent, Edward went downstairs and did an inspection there. Winnie followed him. “If you don’t leave right now, I will call the police.”
    Edward came to a stop in the kitchen and finally addressed her, “Don’t be so dramatic, Eleanor. Tiffany said you were fixing up the place to sell and I wanted to see it for myself.
    “You’re supposed to call before you come over, Edward, you know that. And please address me as Winnie from here on out.”
    A tall man with a bit of paunch that his expensive suit couldn’t disguise, Edward Crenshaw eyed his ex-wife with scorn. “That’s right, I heard that you’d changed your name back to Winifred Wilde. Good name for a pole dancer,” he snorted.
    Winnie pointed toward the door, “Please leave, Edward, or I will call the police. I’ll have the treadmill sent to you.”
    Ignoring her, Edward looked at Ben, who was still on his feet watching and ready to eject the intruder if needed. “Are you the contractor’s assistant?” he asked Ben.
    “I am the contractor,” Ben answered stiffly. “Ben Church, one of the owners.”
    “You’ve done a nice job here, son,” Edward said to him. “But the color in the bedrooms upstairs is all wrong. Please repaint them their original color.”
    Ben took two steps forward, coming closer to Edward. They were nearly the same height. Edward was heavier, but Ben more muscled and fit. “I painted those per Ms. Wilde’s wishes,” Ben told him in an even voice. “I work for her.”
    “You don’t own this house, Edward,” Winnie reminded him. “I do. So get out.” She picked up the phone. “Or I will call the police.”
    “Calm down, Eleanor,” Edward said. “I want to buy the place.” He pulled a pen from inside his coat pocket. Walking over to the table, he picked up a paper napkin and jotted a figure down on it and handed it to her. “And this is what I’m paying you. How soon can you be out?”
    Edward turned back to Nadia, as if seeing her for the first time. “Nadia, you will, of course, still be employed here.” Nadia just stared at him, but moved closer to Winnie.
    Winnie looked at the napkin in disbelief. “You want to buy this place?”
    “Yes,” he answered. “Victoria and I are getting married in two weeks and she wants to live here. That price also includes all the furniture. We’ll take it as is.”
    “You expect me to just pack up my clothes and toothbrush and leave?” Winnie asked in disbelief. “Just like that? As if I never lived here?”
    “Am I not making myself clear?” Edward asked with impatience.
    “What woman in her right mind would want to live in the same house her husband’s first wife set up?” Ben asked.
    “This is none of your concern,” Edward said to Ben without looking at him. “As soon as Mrs. Crenshaw has moved out, you will repaint those rooms, as I have ordered.”
    “Listen, pal,” Ben said, taking another step forward. “I don’t work for you. And you don’t own this place.”
    “And you never will!” Winnie crumpled up the napkin and threw it in Edward’s face. “Tell the truth. This isn’t Vicki’s idea, it’s yours, Edward. You want to live here. And you’re turning her into a mindless robot just as you did me. You’ve even formalized her name. She’s been Vicki for the past two years. Now that you’re marrying her, she’s Victoria?” She took a couple of deep breaths. “Now get out of my house.”
    “I think you need to leave, Mr. Crenshaw,” Ben said, taking Edward by the arm.
    Edward yanked his arm out of Ben’s grasp. “Get your filthy hands off of