Chapter 283 — Don’t Test Me

Chapter 283 — Don’t Test Me
“What do you think?”

Clara’s voice was soft, but it trembled slightly. She stood there in the fitting room doorway, her fingers nervously brushing over the hem of the shimmering skirt. Matteo hadn’t spoken a word since she stepped out.

He was staring.

Not casually.

Not playfully.

Staring like a man who had just realized he had made a dangerous mistake.

“I shouldn’t have asked you to wear that,” he muttered, his jaw tightening.

Her heart dropped instantly.

Was it that bad?

Did she look ridiculous?

Heat crept up her neck as insecurity flooded in. Before she could say anything—before she could even step back—Matteo grabbed her hand.

Firm.

Decisive.

He pulled her straight back into the fitting room and shut the door behind them.

The small space shrank instantly.

Clara barely had time to react before he turned her around and pinned her gently—but firmly—against the door. His hands caught her wrists and lifted them above her head. Not painfully. Not cruelly.

But with unmistakable dominance.

His broad frame filled the entire space, trapping her between his body and the door. There was nowhere to move. Nowhere to look except at him.

Her breath faltered.

His breathing was heavier now. Warmer. It brushed against her skin, sending a ripple of goosebumps across her arms.

His eyes were darker than before.

Not just desire.

Possession.

“I shouldn’t have told you to wear that,” he repeated, his voice low and strained. “Because now I can’t think about anything else.”

Her pulse hammered wildly.

He lowered his face slowly, pressing his forehead near her neck, inhaling as if committing her scent to memory. His lips brushed the curve beneath her ear, then along her jaw, unhurried but deliberate.

Clara bit her lip, fighting the reaction building inside her.

His mouth traced the line of her neck, lingering, grazing her skin with a warmth that made her knees weaken. His hand slid down from her wrists, trailing along her arm, then down her side.

She could feel how close he was.

How completely focused.

Her heart raced so loudly she was sure he could hear it.

“Are you trying to test me?” he murmured against her skin. “Do you want me to lose control in here?”

Her breath hitched.

The thought alone made her stomach tighten.

This wasn’t just flirting anymore.

This was dangerous.

They were in a public store. Staff just outside the door. Security nearby. Cameras are possibly waiting.

But in that moment, none of it felt real.

Only he did.

His hand drifted lower, brushing along her thigh, stopping just above the edge of the skirt. His jaw tightened as his gaze dropped.

“No shorts?” he muttered under his breath.

Clara’s mind flashed back.

She had removed them earlier while changing and never put them back on. She hadn’t planned it. She hadn’t thought it through.

But now—

The look in his eyes told her everything.

A storm.

“Don’t ever do that in public again,” he said quietly, though his voice carried a sharp edge. “You have no idea what it does to me.”

His fingers curled against her waist, tugging her closer.

“If another man looks at you the way I’m looking at you right now…”

He didn’t finish the sentence.

He didn’t need to.

Clara swallowed.

His hand slid up her back, pushing one strap of the shimmering top down slightly. Not tearing. Not ruining it.

But enough to expose the curve of her shoulder.

His gaze followed.

The hunger in his expression made her breath unsteady.

His palm spread against her waist, holding her firmly in place.

Then his lips crashed onto hers.

Not soft.

Not slow.

Fierce.

Claiming.

Her mind blanked.

She melted instantly, her lips parting beneath his. His kiss deepened, rough and urgent, as if he was trying to pour everything he felt into that single moment.

Her fingers tangled in his hair, pulling him closer.

He groaned softly against her mouth.

The kiss grew hotter.

More desperate.

His thumb brushed lightly over her side, then over the bare skin at her waist, tracing small circles that sent electricity down her spine.

Her knees weakened.

She would have collapsed if he hadn’t been holding her upright.

His mouth left hers only to trail down her neck again, pressing heated kisses against the sensitive skin there.

Clara couldn’t stop the soft sound that escaped her.

Her body felt like it was on fire.

He lifted his head abruptly.

His breathing was uneven.

“Careful,” he whispered, placing his hand gently—but firmly—over her mouth for a brief second. “We’re not alone.”

The reminder made her cheeks burn.

They were still in a public store.

Still in a fitting room barely large enough for one person.

He lowered his hand slowly.

“If you want me to stop,” he said quietly, his voice dropping to something more controlled but still intense, “say it. And I will.”

His fingers traced the side of her waist again, slow, deliberate.

She shook her head almost immediately.

“No,” she breathed.

His eyes flashed.

“Are you sure?” he challenged softly.

Instead of answering, Clara pulled him down into another kiss.

Fiercer.

Hungrier.

If this was a mistake, she didn’t care.

He smiled slightly against her lips, clearly pleased by her response.

“Wifey,” he murmured between kisses, teasing despite the tension. “Do you want me to stop?”

She shook her head again, more desperately this time.

“Don’t,” she whispered.

His jaw tightened.

He leaned his forehead against hers for a second, trying to steady himself.

“You’re playing with fire,” he muttered.

Her heart pounded harder.

She could feel the tension coiling tighter between them.

He slid one hand down to her thigh again, gripping it firmly, lifting her slightly so she could feel how serious he was about losing control.

The confined space, the closeness, the risk—it all intensified the moment.

“Beg me to stop,” he challenged quietly, testing her.

She looked at him.

Really looked at him.

His eyes weren’t just filled with desire.

They were filled with something deeper.

Something raw.

“Please,” she whispered—but not the way he expected.

“Please… don’t stop.”

The words came out trembling but honest.

For a second, something flickered across his face.

Surprise.

Possession.

Satisfaction.

He exhaled slowly, his grip tightening slightly as he lowered himself just enough to press his forehead against her shoulder.

And in that charged, breathless space—

With the store just outside.

With the world unaware of what was happening behind that thin door—

Matteo lost the last thread of restraint he had been holding onto.