She blew her breath upward, sending the curl lying over her brow flying sideways.
“Are you about done here?” he asked. “What exactly did you need that couldn’t wait until we got home?”
She lifted one dark eyebrow. “My gun. The only thing I had to defend Birdie and me was one of Sawyer’s baseball bats, and I probably would have ruined it after one hit.”
“It was stupid of us to have left you and Birdie alone,” Hutch said in a low voice. “It won’t happen again.”
He expected her to argue, but she simply turned away and threw a change of clothes into a gym bag.
He and Birdie exchanged glances, and then he motioned with his head for her to follow him into the next room. She nodded, and he walked back into the living room, where the deputy stood waiting on the women.
“Level with me, Birdie. What the hell happened, and are you and Reggie both really okay?”
Birdie smiled. “We’re fine. I expect Reggie is going to feel the results of her little adventure when she’s settled down and comes off the adrenaline rush.”
“What happened exactly? Jeremy said there was an intruder, but I didn’t wait around for details. I wanted to get over here and make sure you two were all right.”
Birdie raised a shaky hand to her forehead. “I honestly don’t know, Hutch. It all happened so fast. Thank goodness for Regina’s instincts. I was helping her down the stairs when she heard a noise. She made me go back into the bedroom and lock the door. She went to investigate.”
“She damn well should have gone into the bedroom with you,” he growled.
“She came back up quickly with the phone and called Jeremy. She made me get into the closet. Next thing I knew, she told me it was okay to come out and we waited for Jeremy.” A smile twitched at the corners of her mouth. “Regina had a baseball bat. I think she fully intended to use it.”
“She wouldn’t have had to if I’d been there,” he muttered.
Birdie laid her hand on his arm and squeezed. “If you and Regina no longer need me, I think I’d like to be getting home. This is all the excitement I can take in a day.”
Hutch frowned. “I don’t want you going back to your house alone. Maybe it would be better if you came back to the house with us.”
She smiled. “This nice young man has already offered to see me home and come in with me to make sure everything’s as it should be. I have the alarm system Sawyer insisted on installing for me.” She shook her head in exasperation. “My house resembles a fortress thanks to you boys.”
“Someone will be patrolling the area.” The deputy spoke up. “I’ll make sure a car drives by her house every hour, and we’ll call periodically to check in on her.”
Hutch nodded. “I appreciate it.”
The deputy smiled. “I know Birdie’s special to you, but she’s also special to this community. She’s done a lot for many of us. As soon as the rest of the department heard what happened, they were lining up to volunteer to run patrols by her house. She’ll have county and local police protection.”
“Let me just go say good-bye to Regina, and then I’ll be on my way,” Birdie said. “You need to get her home so she can get some rest. It’s been a difficult day. She looks like she’s about to fall over.”
Birdie walked back to Reggie’s bedroom and returned a few moments later. Hutch kissed her forehead.
“Call me if you need anything.”
“Oh, I will, and you be sure and let me know if you boys or Regina need anything. I’ll be happy to come out.”
He watched Birdie leave under the watchful eye of the sheriff’s deputy then turned to go back in search of Reggie. He found her standing by her bed, her shoulders drooping with fatigue.
“You finished getting what you need?” he asked.
She immediately straightened. “Yeah, I’m ready to go if you are.”
He reached over to zip up her bag then picked up the strap. He stopped in front of her and wrapped his free hand around the back of her neck, pulling her close. For a long moment, he simply stood there, face buried in her dark curls.
She trembled against him, and her arms crept around his waist.
“Let’s go home,” he murmured against her head. “I think you’ve had enough excitement for one day.”
“I won’t argue that,” she said ruefully as she pulled away.
