She got out of the truck and headed down the docks to his boat. She was actually grateful to have a few minutes alone. She needed to pull herself together, and she was happy for the privacy. She and Reid had been attached at the hip all day. It was no wonder they were both driving each other a little crazy.
She went into the small bathroom to wash her face and hands, then quickly stripped off her jeans and tank top and put on her bridesmaid's dress. She was just applying her makeup when a knock came at the door. She stiffened for a moment, realizing she hadn't locked the door behind her. How stupid was that?
Fortunately, it was only Matt Kelton who came through the door.
"Hello," he said, surprise widening his eyes as he saw her. "Shayla. I didn't expect to find you here. You look—great."
She liked the male appreciation in his eyes. After Reid's icy behavior, her self-esteem needed a little boost. "Thanks. I'm going to my brother's wedding."
"With Reid?"
"Yes. He ran out to the store, but he should be back soon. Do you have some information?"
"I do. Do you mind if I wait?"
"Of course not. This is Reid's home after all."
"You look like you're pretty comfortable here." He sat down on the couch and propped one leg up on the other, giving her a thoughtful look.
"Don't get the wrong idea. I'm only staying here because of the break-in at my apartment. Reid didn't want me to stay there alone, and my family is caught up in wedding mania, so I can't get any help there. Plus, I didn't want to worry them."
"You don't have to explain anything to me. I'm happy to see a woman here. Reid has been a hermit the last six months."
"A hermit?" she asked doubtfully. "When I first met him in the bar he seemed to have plenty of female companionship."
"Yeah, that's true, but most of those girls never made it out of the bar with him. And his friends didn't have much better luck. I know I couldn't get him off that barstool for any amount of money." He smiled. "But you did."
"Actually, I think it was Robert who did that. I came to Reid with a message from his brother."
"I know that's what happened, but I don't think Reid would have followed Robert out of that bar. There's a lot of bad blood between them. Somehow you made Reid not care about that. And I find that interesting."
"I wouldn't say I made him care. I just made him curious." She perched on the edge of the chair. "I didn't know the whole history of Reid, Robert and Lisa until this weekend. Robert and I have been friends for a long time, and I respect him greatly, but what he did to his brother was really bad. I can understand why Reid holds a grudge."
"I can, too. I was there that night. I lived through the aftermath. I'd never seen him so angry, so bitter, so destroyed."
"I can't even imagine."
"So tell me why Reid wants to help his brother now?"
She stared back at him. "Weren't you and Reid in the Army together?"
"Yes, we were. Why?"
"Then you already know why he's helping Robert. Reid is an intensely loyal person. And he'll help anyone who needs help."
A gleam entered Matt's eyes. "You're right. He'll save anyone, no matter the cost to himself, but he's already lost a lot. I don't want this save to cost him anything else."
She thought about that for a moment. She hadn't considered that it might not be fair to Reid to bring him into the middle of a dangerous situation. She'd just done what Robert asked her to do. "I hope this will end quickly and easily. I don't want Reid to get hurt either."
"Then let's work together to make sure that doesn’t happen."
She didn't understand his tone. "What exactly do you mean?"
"If Robert has been doing some shady things, you'd be doing all of us a favor by coming clean. Then we'll know what we're getting into."
"I don't know that Robert has done anything wrong. Do you?"
He shrugged. "The picture isn't entirely clear yet. I don't like to make assumptions based on minimal evidence."
"Well, when you get some evidence, let me know."
He nodded. "I'll do that. We're on the same side you know."
"It isn't really feeling like that right now."
"Okay, maybe I'm more on Reid's side than Robert's. I won't protect Robert at Reid's expense. I won't do that to the best friend I ever had."
"I understand," she said, hearing the passion in his voice. "I hope it won't come down to that choice."
"Me, too."
"I should finish getting ready." She got up, then paused. "Reid told me that you want him to work for you."
"I do, but I haven't convinced him yet."
"Why do you think that is?" It seemed to her that Matt was offering Reid the perfect job.
He sighed. "When you win the gold medal, when you climb the highest mountain, when you're the best of the best, it's hard to figure out what to do next when it's over. Everything pales in comparison."
"I suppose it does."
"Reid needs to reinvent himself."
"He will," she said confidently. "He'll find his feet again."
"I hope so. I'd love him to join my team. He'd be a tremendous asset. So anything you can say in that regard—"
She immediately cut him off with a shake of her head. "I have absolutely no ability to persuade Reid to do anything."
Matt grinned. "Oh, I wouldn't go that far. I have a feeling you could persuade him to do a lot of things."
She flushed a little at the innuendo. "I told you it's not like that. We only met a couple of days ago."
"Things usually happen fast around Reid. He's the kind of man who goes after what he wants—once he figures out what he wants."
"Well, he doesn't want me. I'm just a link to his brother."
Matt frowned. "Yeah, that actually might be a strike against you. After what happened with Lisa and Robert, I can't see Reid wanting to hook up with someone involved with his brother."
"I'm not involved with his brother. I'm not involved with anyone. I'm single. I'm a doctor. That's it."
"What's going on?" Reid asked, his voice interrupting what had become a heated conversation, at least on her part.
"Nothing," she said. He didn't want to answer her personal questions. She didn't have to answer his. "I'm going to do my hair."
She went into the tiny bathroom and pulled the door closed. She heard Reid ask Matt what they were talking about, but she didn’t hear Matt's answer. She opened the door a few inches and realized they'd gone out to the deck. Was that because they didn't want her to hear the conversation or because they were giving her some privacy?
It didn't matter, she told herself, shutting the door again. She needed to finish getting ready, and for the rest of the evening she was going to focus on her family and the wedding and not give Reid and his annoying sexy moodiness another thought.
* * *
"I like Shayla. She's got fire," Matt told Reid as they walked out to the deck.
"What did you say to piss her off?"
"I think it was more than one thing," Matt said with an unrepentant smile. "You know how good I am with women."
"Why are you here?"
"I have some information for you."
"Tell me."
Matt's expression turned serious. "A body was pulled out of the bay yesterday. The deceased was a man by the name of Karl Straitt. He was an attorney at Abbott Pharmaceutical."
"What?" His gut clenched in shock. Matt certainly had his attention now.
"According to the initial investigation, Straitt was an avid boater and had been on vacation for the past two weeks. His boat has not been located. And his apartment was in good shape, no signs of foul play. However, one of the senior executives at Abbott told the police that Karl and Robert had had some heated arguments in the last few months."
"Was the executive's name Hal Collins?"
Matt nodded. "Yes. He gave the police quite an earful about Robert, saying the guy had gone off the rails since his divorce, that he was making mistakes and some of his grant money seemed to be missing."
"I never heard that before. The deceased—Straitt—he was an attorney at the company?"
"Yeah. You've heard his name before?"
"A few hours ago. Lisa told me that Robert had had an argument with Straitt about a month ago."
Matt's jaw dropped. "What did you just say?"
"Yes, I saw Lisa. I went to her house to ask her about Robert."
"I cannot believe you did that."
"It had to be done."
Matt nodded, concern in his eyes. "How was it?"
"It sucked," he admitted. "I had to listen to her rehash our whole fraud of an engagement."
"She's a materialistic bitch."
"Yeah, she is," he agreed. "And probably the worst punishment Robert could have received for his betrayal was getting stuck with her for seven years."
Matt gave him a doubtful look. "You're not forgiving your brother, are you?"
"You know what? I'm done with the whole thing. It's not about forgiving or forgetting. It's just over."
"Well, good."
"Good," he echoed. "So what do the police think happened to Straitt?"
"Right now it looks like an accidental drowning. But if it turns into more than that, your brother is probably going to be a suspect."
He wondered if that was why Robert had gone into hiding. Had he killed Straitt? Or had he realized he was being set up? "We need to find out more about the relationship between Straitt and my brother."
"My team is looking into it. I also got your text earlier about the hospital security video, and I happen to have a friend who knows a friend—"
"And?"
"The security video from the last three days seems to be missing," Matt replied.
"Well, that's convenient. So we don't know who searched Robert's office."
"No, but there's one good thing; there's no evidence of you and Shayla visiting Robert's office either."
"Not to the general world, but to whoever has the tape…"
"Right."
Reid thought for a moment. "You need to check on all the executives at Abbott starting with Hal Collins. See if you can find a money trail of any sort. I think someone at Abbott paid for a search of Robert's office and Shayla's apartment. Maybe they even paid off a security guard to lose the video coverage."
"Already on it," Matt said with a smile. "But I like how your mind is working. You're getting back in the game, Becker."
"Well, you want me in your company, prove to me how good you are."
"Done. I like a challenge. But while I'm doing that, what are you going to do?"
"I'm going to find my brother."
"Do you need backup?"
He hesitated. "I don't know yet."
"All you have to do is call."
"I'll keep that in mind. For now I'm flying solo."
"Not exactly solo." Matt tipped his head toward the interior of the boat. "Are you taking Shayla with you?"
"No. I might need you to watch out for her when I leave."
"Say the word."
"Thanks."
Shayla popped her head out of the doorway. "I'm sorry to interrupt, but the wedding starts in an hour, and I'm supposed to be there in twenty minutes."
"I'll get dressed," he told her.
As Shayla went back inside, Reid couldn't help but notice the knowing smile on his friend's face. "What?"
"You know what happens at weddings don't you? The champagne is flowing. Everyone is looking good. Love is in the air…"
"I know what's
not
going to happen at this wedding," he retorted. "Shayla is a friend."
"A friend you want to have sex with. But hey if you're not interested, I'm single, and she's—"
"Not for you," Reid cut in sharply.
Matt laughed, taking no offense. "I thought it was like that. Why are you fighting it? She's beautiful and smart."
"Go home, Kelton."
"Fine, I'm going. But a word of advice?"
"Why would I take advice from a man who has a terrible track record with women?"
"Good point, but you're no better."
"I don't need your advice. I know what I'm doing."
"I hope so. Or the next wedding you go to might be your own."
* * *
Matt's words ran around in Reid's head as he took a quick shower, shaved and put on dress slacks and a button-down shirt. Shayla said the wedding wasn't formal, which he hoped was true, since he didn't own a tie or a suit. He'd made a quick trip into town to buy a better razor so at least he was clean-shaven. As he took a quick look into the mirror, he almost didn't recognize himself.
He hadn't thought about dressing for anyone in a very long time. The women he met at the bar saw him in shadows and through a haze of alcohol, which made everyone look better. But Shayla was seeing him as he really was, which was a disturbing thought. He didn't like how good she was at reading between the lines. He didn't like how she'd gotten under his skin. He didn't like how comfortable it felt to have her around in his space, space he usually kept only to himself.
Unfortunately, he did like
her
—too much. Which was the real problem.
"Reid," she called. "Are you almost ready? We need to go. I can't be late. My family will kill me."
"I'm ready," he said, wishing it were true. But ready or not, the Callaways were waiting.
Chapter Sixteen
"What did Matt have to say?" Shayla asked as they drove to the church.
He really didn't want to tell her about the death of Robert's coworker, but she was involved, and she had a right to know what was going on. "An attorney for Abbott Pharmaceuticals, Karl Straitt, was found dead in the bay yesterday."
Her eyes widened with shock. "Are you serious? That's the guy Lisa told you about, isn't it?" she asked, shock in her eyes.
"Yes."
"How did he die?"
"He drowned. Apparently, he was a boater."
"So it was an accident?"
He heard the hopeful note in her voice and didn't want to disappoint her, but he also didn't want to lie to her. "I doubt it, Shayla."
"Then—someone killed him?"
He glanced over at her, seeing the fear back in her eyes. He hated that he'd been the one to put it there. "They don't know what happened. It's probably better if we don’t jump to conclusions."