Page 46 of The Wedding Party

“No one,” Nick bites out.

“Oh, come on, Nick,” Cade chides. “Why are you protecting him?”

“She needs to know,” Trevor agrees, his attention on me now. “Brody and Oliver had a falling-out. None of us knew what it was about, but they didn’t speak for months.”

“And yet he was here?” I query.

“Josh invited him,” Cade offers. “And Carrie was not happy.”

“Why not?” I ask.

There’s a lot of shrugging that follows. No one has an answer for me.

“How did the surprise invitation work out?” I ask.

“Oliver and Brody were hanging out together,” Trevor says. “At the early part of the party. They made peace.”

“Brody isn’t here with you now,” I observe. “Why?”

“Once he and Oliver had that falling-out, he disappeared,” Cade states. “He cut us all out. We hadn’t seen him in months.”

And yet Josh, the best man, invited him. He had to have known Oliver wanted to mend that broken fence of friendship. I eye Josh over at the bar now. “How’s he holding up?”

“Like shit,” Trevor says. “He was off with the Lana chick and didn’t see Oliver much last night. He’s feeling pretty guilty.”

Guilt.

It can kill, I think.

Nothing about this group interests me right now. Josh is another story.

“Expect to talk to me again back in Denver. And if any of you have anything I need to know, call or text me.” I set a stack of cards on the table and move toward Josh.

Chapter Thirty-Eight

As I near Josh, his energy says that he knows I’m approaching him, but he doesn’t turn to greet me. Instead, I claim the seat next to him and we both just sit there staring across the bar. His eyes meet mine in the bar mirror and he turns to look at me. “Agent Castle. Do you know how I know you’re Agent Castle?”

“I’m fairly certain at this point the entire hotel knows who I am,” I reply.

“Oliver told me. He told me before I ever came in contact with you. He was freaked out about you being here. As his friend and attorney, he wanted me to make sure there wasn’t a problem. I told him he was paranoid. Obviously, he wasn’t.”

“I didn’t attend this event for professional reasons,” I assure him.

“And yet, he thought you did,” he retorts. “Why?” There’s anger bubbling beneath his surface.

His anger doesn’t unsettle me. Death breeds guilt and guilt breeds anger, especially in those close to the person, and usually in those with regrets. I want to know what the source is for Josh, but I’ll go slow and let him lead me there.

“My badge tends to make people nervous,” I state. “It could have been nothing more than that.”

“Or it was more and I was too busy chasing a skirt to find out for him. And now he’s dead. Now it’s obvious to me something was going on. What did I miss? Why did you being here freak him out? And don’t repeat that badge makes people nervous bullshit.”

“You tell me. You were his attorney and best man, which I assume translated to the best friend.”

“Like a brother,” he says, downing his whisky. “He was like a brother.”

“And Brody? Was he like a brother?”

“Yeah,” he confirms. “We were all close. Real close, but they’d had a falling-out.”