Page 23 of Wicked Ambition

He was trying to make it sound as if it would take a ridiculously long time to disguise her, but he was wrong. “The wig, yes, but the idea is for me to not look like my sister. Io and I already dress differently from each other. We wear our makeup differently. I can wear my own clothes and makeup.”

“It didn’t work today,” Oz pointed out. “They thought you were Iona immediately upon seeing you.”

Ayla gave Oz a glare. “That was without a wig.”

“Ms. Desmond,” BD said. Her gasp stopped him short.

“How did you know my last name?” She felt the blood drain from her face.

“I called Archer. Your VP of Strategy and Systems is in my contacts. He gave me your surname.”

Confusion drove away the fear. “How does he know who I am?”

“He knows who your sister is,” BD said. “He’s aware of you because of her.”

That didn’t clear anything up. She knew who Archer was because someone working in PR needed to be familiar with all the League’s officers. There was no reason for a VP to be aware of her sister, or even if he somehow knew of Iona, why he should care about Ayla. She looked at Oz. “But he shouldn’t know who my sister is either.”

“Archer said he was responsible for your sister being assigned to come to Puerto Jardin,” BD said.

That could happen. Maybe Archer had heard about the ruins and decided they’d be the perfect feature for the donor’s magazine. All he’d need to do was pick up the phone and call Io’s department head. It sounded logical, yet Ayla had a sense that Oz’s…boss?…wasn’t being honest. She thought about pushing but decided it ultimately didn’t matter. The only important thing was locating her sister and arguing about some VP didn’t further her goal.

Returning to the original topic, she said, “I can wear a wig. Light brown hair should look natural with my skin tone. Thenwecan search for Io.”

Another glance between the two men, and then Oz said, “Ayla?—”

“No. I’m going to help. It will take you much longer to find her without me. Maybe too long. I won’t let my sister’s life be at risk because you want to shelter me.”

“If your sister is as street smart as you told me she is,” Oz snapped, “then she’s in hiding, and if we’re not careful, we could lead Petrova right to her.”

“She’s not hiding. She’s in trouble and she needs to be rescued now.” Ayla leaned forward and glared up at Oz.

“That’s bullshit. You’ve let your anxiety about Iona blow this situation completely out of proportion.”

“I did no such thing.” Ayla was furious. How dare he discount the danger her twin was in because he thought she was a hysterical woman? “My sister is in real trouble. I know it.”

“Really? You know it? How?”

He leaned down to return her glare. Between that and his tone, she reached a boiling point. “Because my sister and I have a connection. She communicated she was in danger, and I canfeelshe’s still in danger. That’s how.”

As the words came out of her mouth, Ayla regained a modicum of control. She hadn’t meant to share that. Psychologists said the twin bond was nothing more than familiarity and observation. No one believed there was a psychic connection.

Except for the twins who actually shared a telepathic link.

Chapter 10

Oz stared at Ayla.

Captain Nguyen walked toward the door and said, “This one is all yours. I’m putting you in charge of finding Iona Desmond.” He didn’t wait for an acknowledgment before leaving the room.

The tone of voice told him what his CO thought. It was a good thing Archer confirmed Ayla’s sister was missing or the captain might have torpedoed the entire search. Oz shook off his own shock. If he was in charge, he needed to ask questions. “Did your sister use a phone to contact you? Any material device at all? Or was everything this woo-woo psychic shit?”

Ayla’s lips tightened. “It was woo-woo psychic shit,” she said with an edge to her voice.

He stared some more, trying to wrap his mind around it. “You hopped on a plane—when you’re afraid of flying—to Puerto Jardin, a country in the middle of a civil war, because you got afeeling?” Oz wanted a neutral tone, but what came out sounded like disbelief. Ayla didn’t miss it.

“I knew you’d react like this.”

Pieces snapped into place as his memories of their previous conversations echoed in his head. “This is why you weredeliberately vague earlier. Why did you say something now? Why not keep hiding it?”

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