Page 81 of Hidden Attraction

“You’re meeting with Con…but we need you to talk to Kennedy for us.”

Her mouth popped open, pain rippling across her beautiful face. “It has to be me?”

He nodded.

“It has to be me,” she said firmly with a nod. “Okay, when?”

“Now.”

He watched her transform from the sensual minx that rivaled him in the bedroom to the fearless ambassador.

She beat him to the door. As they descended the grand staircase of the mansion that housed Blackout Charlie team, she held her head high and thrust her shoulders back in a regal pose.

Things flashed through Chase’s head. Things like white dresses and veils.

Fuck. Denver warned him.

He was really screwed. Their feelings for each other were out, but they were light-years away from figuring out how—or if—they could make it work.

* * * * *

“I’ll be right outside the door if you need me.” Julian’s gaze burned into Alyssa.

She nodded but didn’t immediately open the door of the debriefing room, her fingers curled into a tight fist at her side. The sharp scent of floor cleaner lingered in the hallway, but it was the silence that made her skin crawl. Inside, Con sat waiting—which promised her nothing but more questions.

She stepped inside alone, without Julian.

“Have a seat.” He motioned toward the chair across from him. His tone was deceptively calm, but she knew how to read the shadows in people’s voices.

She sat, shoulders squared, chin lifted. She wouldn’t show him weakness—not now.

“You did good,” he started, tapping a pen against a file folder. “But we’re still missing pieces. The man we have—Kareem—gave us nothing we didn’t already suspect. He’s a pawn, not a player. And Cypher? Still a ghost.”

Her stomach tightened. “Then what’s next?”

“Sheen’s son,” Con said, leaning forward. “We need to find out more about the son and all his connections. What we find out could sway the entire op.”

She nodded slowly. “And me?”

He didn’t answer right away. Instead, he closed the file and folded his hands over it. “Until we find Cypher, you’re still in danger. We believe he’s done with this particular game, but that doesn’t mean you’re off the board. You should stay here. In hiding.”

Alyssa hesitated. A week ago, she would’ve refused. But now? After the warehouse, after the gun at her temple, after Julian’s face smudged with ash and blood as he dragged her out of hell—she wasn’t so sure.

She swallowed. “If you think it’s best…”

Con’s mouth twitched into something like a smirk. “You saying that without argument seems…out of character.”

“Maybe I’m different these days.”

The sharp look he gave her made her believe he understood more than he was letting on.

She pushed to her feet. “I need to make some calls. Personal ones. Can you tell Dante not to listen in?”

“I’ll text him,” Con said with a nod, already pulling out his phone. When he exited the room too, she heard a low rumble of voices as Con and Julian exchanged a few words. When the voices cut off, she walked over to the tall window, staring at the phone in her hand.

A moment later, her own screen lit up with a message from Dante.

Okay. No bugs. You have fifteen minutes.

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