The rumors about romance between Condoleezza Rice and Peter MacKay started back in 2006 when they were photographed smiling together in Nova Scotia, but in her autobiography, No Higher Honor: A Memoir of My Years in Washington, Rice is dismissing them once and for all. Rather than being embarrassed or defensive, she seems to be taking the speculation in stride, and might even find it almost as entertaining as the public does.

The Huffington Post reports:

In September 2006, the pair appeared in Nova Scotia to commemorate Canada's sheltering of Americans on 9/11. The next morning, MacKay and Rice appeared at Tim Hortons and he remarked that the then-U.S. Secretary Of State had slept with the window open. The comment led to speculation that the two may have spent the night together.

In her book, Rice admits the rumours were "kind of funny, if misdirected."

"When I got home, I called Peter. 'A girl can't be seen with you without some scandal,' I joked. Peter was kind of embarrassed. He is a good friend."

Perhaps more surprising than her dismissal of the romantic rumors is the revelation that Rice was planning to resign from her position after her trip to Nova Scotia, worn out from the strain of managing America's foreign relationships in the wake of the fall of the twin towers. She writes that the trip to Canada helped rejuvenate her spirit and keep her on as America's top diplomat.

"I've never told him (MacKay) that without the levity and refreshment of that visit, I might not have regrouped and returned to Washington to fight another day," Rice writes.

Read more at the Huffington Post.

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