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Ayla hovered close to her twin. They were still in each other’s clothing, but it seemed silly to take the time to change. Oz knew who she was. It was impossible to stop the smile.

The dining room was painted bright yellow with white support poles spaced evenly along the wall.

The table was big and the wood darkened with age.

There were four chairs along either side, two at the head, and two at the foot.

The floor was the same red terra cotta tiles, but she hadn’t seen a room in the house without it yet.

A sad-looking ceiling fan with three small blades sat above the center of the table.

Io leaned against the wall watching Oz and BD as they discussed the situation.

“How long do you expect us to keep them here? Until Ivanov and his empire are toppled? Until someone finds a treasure missing for more than two hundred years?” BD’s voice was calm and reasonable, and that made his questions more unnerving.

Oz frowned. “Until Archer can find bodyguards who can be trusted.”

“Which, given Ivanov’s reach, might take months. We can’t babysit for that long.”

“What’s the alternative? Send them back to LA and hope for the best?”

BD looked as if he might contemplate doing just that. Ayla stiffened, but she trusted Oz to take care of her. He wouldn’t allow her—or her twin—to be at risk.

Io straightened and stepped forward. “Captain, you know as well as I do that finding incorruptible bodyguards will be nearly impossible. I will not have my sister in danger.”

“Captain?” BD asked.

“You’re too old to be a lieutenant and too young to be a chief warrant officer.”

BD raised his eyebrows.

Lips curving, Io said, “You interrogated me. Did you think I wouldn’t figure out you lead a Special Forces team?”

“You figured it out?” BD sounded skeptical. He shot a scowl at Oz.

“Your sergeant didn’t say anything. Neither did my sister.” Io folded her arms at her waist. “You’re not the first Green Berets I’ve met.”

“Archer didn’t mention anything?”

“Archer knows?” Io nodded and then smiled ruefully. “Of course he does. Archer operates on a need-to-know basis and he’s stingy with his intel, Captain.”

“Yes, I’ve had firsthand experience with that.” BD ran a hand over the back of his neck. “Call me BD and don’t use anyone’s rank. Lives are on the line, Ms. Desmond.”

“Including my sister’s,” Io countered.

BD pushed back from the table, standing to square off with Iona. “We weren’t sent here to be a protection detail.”

“No, you were sent to stop Torres and plug the flow of illegal arms, but you have a problem, one I’d be willing to help you with.”

“What problem is that?”

BD’s voice was soft, but the tone had Ayla moving closer, ready to defend her twin if necessary.

“Torres has become obsessed with the treasure,” Io said calmly as if BD’s glare didn’t bother her. Maybe it didn’t. “If you’re trying to get close to him using weapons as a lure, you’re going to be waiting a long time.”

“So you believe he’s letting his business stagnate while he tries to locate a treasure that disappeared in the 1820s?”

“No.” Io shook her head. “His arms business is well established, and he has a hierarchy in place. It was shaken when his right-hand man betrayed him, and he’s suspicious of his executives, but they’re running things at the moment.

They’re simply not going to make any big decisions—it’s too risky, given the purge he executed last year—and that means you’ll be spinning your wheels until Torres is finished with his treasure hunt. ”

Oz’s voice was quiet when he said, “Lurch warned us that the treasure was complicating things.”

“I can help you get to Torres,” Io said.

“Why would we need you?” BD’s tone held no inflection.

“Do you think he’ll believe a group of mercenaries know anything about the Lost Treasure? But a group of mercenaries hired by a Paladin League employee…that’s another story.”

BD’s scowl had Ayla moving until she stood side by side with her sister. She crossed her own arms, mimicking Io’s stance, letting him know they were a team.

“Your proposal is to allow you to join our op? That you go undercover with us as someone after the treasure for her own gain?” BD didn’t sound as if he liked the suggestion.

“Torres understands greed. He’ll believe I went rogue when I thought I had a solid lead on the treasure’s location.

With all the players after the prize, hiring protection would make sense to him.

You keep my sister safe, and I get you an inroad to the arms dealer.

You can do whatever you need to do from there. ”

If anything, BD’s glower intensified. Ayla shifted uneasily, and Io’s arm went around her shoulders, giving her a squeeze.

“You’re a pain in the ass,” BD said.

Io’s lips curved. “I’m your key to Torres. How long will you stubbornly insist on your original plan before you concede it isn’t going to work?”

“And your motive is?”

“Keeping my sister safe.” Io gave Ayla’s shoulder another squeeze before she released her. “That’s my only reason for offering to get involved in your op. I won’t allow anything you’re doing, anything I’m doing, to harm her in any way. Are we clear?”

“Io,” Ayla warned under her breath.

Her sister squeezed her hand, a gesture meant to reassure her, but BD looked like a thundercloud. One about to unleash a storm.

Instead of waiting for the lightning to strike, Io continued speaking. “Torres has men surrounding the convent. When I left the abbey eight days ago, I was followed. They know I’m Paladin League.”

“How can you be sure of that?” Oz asked.

“I heard my captor talking to someone about it.”

“You said Torres wasn’t behind your kidnapping.”

“He wasn’t.”

“Who was?” BD asked.

“Have you heard of Fuentes?”

Cal Baggnell wanted to rush to the new safe house, but he knew better.

Besides, it was his own fault. He’d been so intent on his search for Io that he’d forgotten to check his phone for messages.

Normally, he wasn’t careless, but the longer she was missing, the more on edge he’d become. Nothing mattered except finding her.

He didn’t expect Oz to locate her, not when he was supposed to be keeping the Pollita out of the way.

Impatience ate at him, but he wasn’t half-assing anything, not when they just found his Wild Thing. He would take the most circuitous route he could manage and check his tail every two seconds to make sure he wasn’t followed.

The delay chafed, but it was better than putting Io at risk. He’d do whatever it took to keep her safe. His own impatience be damned. He touched the amateur-looking tattoo on his left forearm. His reminder that impulsive actions had consequences.

It was hours before Cal was completely confident no one was following him.

The new safe house was almost as colorful as the old one.

This one was orange and white, but enough paint flaked away to show the concrete beneath it.

Two stories, a tin roof, and only one side overgrown with foliage. That was an improvement.

Following the sound of voices, Cal walked through the house, coming to a stop in the dining room. The twins stood next to each other. His gaze went to Io. “Why are you dressed like you’re going to an office?” he asked. Everyone looked at him, but he didn’t glance away from her.

“Cal!” Her eyes went big, and for an instant, he saw her lower lip wobble before she firmed it.

As he crossed to her, he asked urgently, “Are you okay?”

“Yes, now I am.” She moved, meeting him halfway.

When his arms went around her, she clung to him. “Damn,” he said, pressing his lips to her forehead. “You scared the hell out of me.” If he wasn’t holding her, he might have missed the shiver that coursed through her body. “You’re really okay?”

Io nodded, but she didn’t let go of him.

Closing his eyes, Cal tightened the hug.

His woman didn’t frighten easily. “I got you, Wild Thing. You’re safe.

I won’t let anyone hurt you again, I promise.

” And then he just held on, relieved to feel the warmth of her body against his.

Relieved that she was willing to let him hold her and willing to hold on to him.

The captain’s voice penetrated his focus. “Baggs, how do you know our guest?”

Reluctantly, he opened his eyes to meet BD’s gaze. If he thought Cal was walking away from her, he better think again. Voice firm to send that message, he said, “Io is my wife.”