“And look, this probably doesn’t need saying, but I’m going to say it anyway,” Cam added.
Sawyer rolled his eyes. “Is this the big brother lecture?”
Cam ignored him. “I understand we all have our reservations. We have concerns and fears and maybe even resentment. But we’ve got to be careful to present a united front to Reggie, otherwise this will never work. If we have a problem, then we’re going to have to hash it out privately. We don’t want to give her yet another reason to keep running.”
“You’re right. It doesn’t need saying,” Hutch said.
“Yeah, it does,” Sawyer said. “We can’t afford to screw this up with stupid bullshit. We’re not a bunch of girls. Reggie means a lot to us all. I’m having to put my trust in the two of you not to screw upmychances with her. That’s pretty messed up. So yeah, I’d say we need that reminder often.”
Cam studied the other two men and saw a calmness to their demeanor he hadn’t seen since Birdie had called them about Reggie. Yeah, they’d needed this talk, and maybe they needed it more often just to reinforce what was at stake.
“Okay, now that all that’s out of the way, we have other arrangements to make,” Cam said.
“Yeah? Like what?” Hutch asked.
“We need to drive back to Houston to get your vehicle and Sawyer’s, plus we need to transfer our office here for now, which means moving everything.”
“Did you get with the Robertsons about their project?” Sawyer asked.
Cam nodded. “Yeah, they were okay with the delay when I explained the circumstances. Even so, I need to finish up those drawings so we can go ahead with the building.”
“What about Reggie?” Hutch asked. “One of us needs to stay here with her.”
“I can call Birdie and ask her to come over and stay with Reggie. You two can ride back to Houston with me, and one of you can head right back in your truck. The other can help me get everything together from the office to take back here.”
“Hutch can come back in his truck,” Sawyer said. “I’ll hang out and help you clean out the office. Hutch can arrange to have our calls forwarded to the number here. He needs to grocery shop anyway.”
A soft moan from the couch silenced the men. Cam swiveled in his chair to see Reggie stir.
Hutch stood and pushed his chair back. “I’ll go see about making some supper,” he said in a low voice. “She’s going to be hungry.”
“Chicken,” Sawyer muttered.
Hutch grinned and sauntered toward the kitchen, leaving Cam and Sawyer at the table.
Regina opened her eyes and blinked to try and clear the cobwebs. She felt like someone’s personal punching bag. And then she remembered that for all practical purposes shehadbeen someone’s punching bag.
She tried to sit up, but every muscle in her body protested the movement. With a groan, she sank back against the pillows. Cam and Sawyer appeared in front of her and looked down, concern in their eyes.
“How are you feeling?” Sawyer asked.
“Like someone beat the hell out of me?”
Cam’s lips came together in a thin line.
“Bad choice of words,” she mumbled.
She tried to sit up again, and this time, Sawyer reached down and helped her. Her stomach rolled, and a hot flash of nausea made her momentarily weak.
“I’m starving,” she said. “I don’t think taking that painkiller on an empty stomach was the smartest idea.”
“Hutch is making supper now,” Cam said.
She stared up at the two men towering over her. “What am I doing here?” she asked. “What are you doing here? And where is here exactly?”
Cam and Sawyer exchanged glances. One of those looks that told her they were ganging up on her. She glared up at them, silently daring one of them to pull that touching stunt. They kept their distance, so maybe the subtle threat worked.
Or not.
