Chapter 206

“Oh, for goodness’ sake, it should not be this difficult!” She threw down the coffee scoop in her frustration.

“Do you need help with that?”

She jumped at the sound of Nolan's voice, startled to see him standing in the doorway to her kitchen.

“What?” Then she noticed he was looking from her to the coffeemaker with an expression of mild confusion on his face. If only all her frustrations in life could be blamed on Mr. Coffee, not the inscrutability of men. “Oh,” she muttered dumbly, picking the scoop back up and resuming the task. “No. I’ve got it. I assume I’m going to need caffeine for this.”

Nolan's lack of response was answer enough. She watched him, waiting for him to cross the tiny kitchen and pull her into his arms. To offer her the solace of his embrace, even if the news he had to share would bring no comfort at all. But he didn’t move toward her, and with each passing second the gap between them seemed to grow wider.

Nolan scowled. He