Page 4 of Hidden Attraction

Kennedy looked up from folding clothes. “Your blazer’s hanging in the closet.” She pointed to the hanging bar and went back to packing Alyssa’s belongings.

If not for her assistant, her life would be even more in shambles. Kennedy went above and beyond the standard duties of taking messages and making appointments. She was so efficient that she practically ran Alyssa’s life, right down to the shoes she would be wearing when she briefed with the secretary-general later in New York.

Over a pair of flowy trousers and her silk blouse, she added the blazer to match. Then she hastily yanked her hair into a sleek ponytail and slipped on leather boots.

“Your secure line is being routed through the jet,” Kennedy informed her, folding the last garment into the suitcase and zipping it up. “You’ll be briefed by General Hemmings as soon as you’re wheels up.”

General Hemmings.

She took two steps to the bed and unzipped the suitcase her assistant just finished packing.

Kennedy’s eyes popped open wider as Alyssa rummaged through the neatly folded clothes. “What are you doing?”

“If I’m speaking to General Hemmings, I need something black. It covers stress sweat.”

Kennedy located her black suit, and Alyssa began to strip off the beige. When she looked at her boots, she arched a brow at her assistant who also enjoyed playing the role of stylist. “Do the boots still work?”

Kennedy dug in the front pocket of her luggage and withdrew low-heeled pumps. “Try these.”

“You’re always cool and calm. Are you ever going to tell me your secret?” Alyssa was already sweating just from changing suits, while Kennedy looked immaculate in a cream blouse, trousers of the same hue and high heels that screamed “expensive but practical.”

She yanked on her pants and fastened them. “This is a nightmare. I almost miss being a negotiator. Then I only had one problem to solve at a time. Now…it feels like fifty.” She shoved her arms into the sleeves of her jacket and then went for the change of footwear while her assistant stowed everything away, neat and tidy.

Alyssa ran her hands over her hair to smooth any flyaway strands—a few of them silver. “You know, I always admire your ability to look put together while I’m falling apart. Meanwhile, I look eighty. And are those new shoes?”

Kennedy extended one long leg to show off the gleaming leather heels. “Not new—just freshly polished. And you don’t look eighty, Alyssa. You look thirty. Though a hot and sweaty thirty.” She moved to the hotel room door and lifted the handle of her own suitcase.

“Good to hear, I think? When do you have time to shop?” She grabbed her own suitcase and looped the long strap of her laptop case over her shoulder.

She really couldn’t care less about shopping and clothes right now. She just needed a distraction from the monstrous weight on her shoulders.

That call with General Hemmings was going to be a doozy. The man was a hard-ass on a good day, let alone after a massive breach of national security.

Her stomach twisted with fresh nerves.

“What I wouldn’t give for a coffee and the only hurdle to be a language barrier. Now the whole world seems to be on fire.”

Kennedy threw her a sympathetic glance as they stepped into the elevator and rode down to the lobby. She didn’t smile, nor did she try to argue with Alyssa. The unspoken truth hung between them. This wasn’t simple. It wasn’t even manageable.

It was chaos on an international scale.

They exited the hotel and hurried to the black car waiting for them.

Damn. Outside was swarming with news reporters.

Cameras were shoved in her face. Questions were fired at her. She managed to keep her head down and stride to the door the driver opened for them. A guard pressed a comms device in his ear and said, “She’s en route” right before the door slammed.

As soon as Alyssa settled into the back seat and was concealed behind dark, tinted windows, Kennedy produced a travel mug out of thin air and held it out to her.

“I put an irresponsible number of espresso shots in this. Figured you’d need it.”

“Oh my god. You’re a gem. And I say that in a way that’s only mildly codependent.” Alyssa took the mug with a sigh of relief as the car, mobbed by reporters, pulled into morning traffic.

Her phone wasstillblowing up. She answered several messages, but what was there to say about the horrific tragedy? Lives were lost, and no one seemed to know why, let alone begin to understand it.

She had toured through many countries, seen the worst of humanity. Yet she didn’t live that on a daily basis. She had so much to be grateful for—like rich espresso and the ability to travel with good people, some who kept her safe and others who kept her sane.

The minute she got into the air, Kennedy handed over Alyssa’s phone with General Hemmings on the secured line.

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