Flavor Of The Month (Kiss & Tell Book 2) by Tori Carrington Page A

she couldn’t help herself from asking as she fidgeted in the comfortable leather booth.
    “You could be making a comment on people with that statement,” he said quietly.
    “What? That we’re all hot dogs underneath our toppings?”
    He smiled as he turned her hand over and drew his fingertips along the ultrasensitive skin there. She tried to suppress a shiver, but failed, tilting her head when it raced up her spine and neck.
    “No. That when you take away all the trappings, the games, we’re all just human.”
    “Hmm. Seems to be a frequent topic with us. Humanity.”
    He pressed his lips against her palm. “Yes, it does, doesn’t it?”
    She fought to concentrate on the mental path he was leading her down, but her body battled back, much happier focusing on the flick of his tongue against her skin, the wholly provocative expression on his face, and the suggestion in his eyes that they could be doing something much, much more interesting in that one moment.
    She restlessly licked her lips. “I, um, guess we all get so wrapped up in the busyness of our own lives that we don’t take much time out to consider life as a whole. I mean…what does it all mean, anyway?” Her heart thrummed an erratic rhythm in her chest as he trailed the very tip of his forefinger down her wrist and up her arm to her elbow.
    Oh boy.
    “You’re the only one who’s made me stop to think about it,” Ben murmured, his attention on her skin.
    If he didn’t stop, she was going to slide down under the table and pull him along with her.
    The lights flickered. Reilly couldn’t be sure if it was reality or an extension of her own short-circuiting brain. But then the lights went out altogether, leaving only the light of the setting sun filtering in through the windows and a quiet hush hanging over the room.
    “Damn,” Ben muttered, seeming reluctant to let her go.
    Yep. Those were her sentiments exactly as she watched him scoot from the booth and start for the back of the restaurant, leaving Reilly alone to ponder his words, his mouth, her own lack of control when it came to him and food, and the restlessness of the customers around her.
    As she sat quietly in the dark, she wondered what the future held for her and Ben Kane. Was it just her, or did things seemed to be getting serious fast? Or was she an ingenue when it came to the dating scene and that what was passing between them was normal first-time dating stuff? She couldn’t be sure. But she did know she wanted—no, longed for—it to continue. Even as a part of her worried about what would happen when Ben would eventually wake up and see her for who she really was and bolt in the other direction.
    She wouldn’t think about that now. Couldn’t think about that now.
    In fact, she decided she needed to do something other than sit there in the dark before she turned into an emotional basket case altogether.
    Either that or eat all the delicious-smelling food on the table in front of her under the cover of darkness.
    She slid from the booth, firmly deciding on the former. She’d never fit into that bridesmaid dress if she did the latter.

9
     
     
    T HE POWER OUTAGE was just one in a long line of mysterious mishaps in the past week, testing Ben’s patience. And why this one had to happen tonight of all nights further agitated him. In the kitchen, he consulted with Lance, propping open the doors to both the dining area and the back so at least a little light penetrated the complete darkness. The quiet hum of conversation between the guests was starting to get a little louder, a little more anxious.
    Lance was running his hands through his hair. “I don’t know what’s going on, boss. The outage isn’t local. I checked the fuse box and looked outside, but couldn’t find any sign of the cause.”
    Great. In the seven years since opening the restaurant, he’d never encountered a power outage before.
    “Candles.”
    Ben turned to find Reilly behind him.
    “Surely, you have