"And how much is all of that going to cost?" she asked with her hands on her hips. It almost sounded like a scam; like he was making up problems so she would pay for them. But that was probably a response to the last guy who'd tried to cheat her out of her money.
Vince stood there for a moment, looking around again like he was thinking about it before he finally answered. "A couple thousand I think, maybe a little bit less depending how bad some of the damage to the walls and floors are and how cheap I can get parts."
"That's it?" It was still a good chunk of money, but it was definitely less than the first estimate. "When can you start?" she asked, rummaging in her purse for an advance to give him for supplies. Whatever she could do to make it go faster, the better it would be for her.
"Whenever you want me to start," he answered, running his fingers through his red hair before she slapped down a few hundred dollars in his hand. Her fingers brushed accidentally against his rough skin, and she pulled it back quickly.
"You're a lifesaver!" she exclaimed, ready to give him a giant hug. "I'll need you right away. It's very important I get the business running again. How long do you think it will be?"
"A couple of weeks," he answered with a crooked smile. "But once the serious stuff is taken care of, you can probably open up for a few hours, and I can work around customers. We'll see. I'm going to head out and get some supplies and be back. I have some free time and might as well get started now."
Clarke watched him walk out, realizing his walk definitely had some swagger to it. "Oh yes, we will see," she whispered to herself before heading over to the coffee shop. She needed to eat and have some coffee in case she decided to stay all night and supervise his work. She'd brought in some battery powered lamps just in case. As great as he sounded, he was still not licensed, and she couldn't afford for him to make mistakes. And a tiny part of her thought that watching him work would be quite fun in those tight jeans he had on. He certainly had one night stand written all over him.