Page 164 of My Italian Love Affair

I can feel it in the way he presses me into the couch, his body solid and warm over mine. In the way his large, hot hands roam painfully slowly up my thighs, pushing my dress higher, higher - but not quite high enough.

In the way he pulls back just as I start to lose myself, smirking down at me like he’s won some kind of battle.

I blink up at him, dazed.

"Seriously?"

"What?" he grins.

I scowl.

"You hesitatenow? Really?"

Matteo chuckles, dragging the tip of his nose down the length of my throat.

"I just like watching you squirm,cara."

"You aresoannoying," I mutter.

"I prefer devastatingly charming.”

I glare at him, but the effect is probably ruined by the way my breath hitches as his lips graze my collarbone.

"Fine," I say, shifting beneath him just enough to brush against the growing hardness pressing against my thigh. His muscles tense. "Two can play that game, Rossi."

His grip on me tightens.

"Daphne -"

"What?” I bite back a smirk as I blink up at him. “I’m just getting comfortable."

His jaw clenches, and it’s so deeply satisfying to see him struggle for control that I nearly cackle.

Nearly.

Because then Matteo decides he’s had enough of my antics.

With a low growl, he lifts me with ridiculous ease, settling me firmly back onto his lap so I’m straddling him once again. His hands grip my hips, keeping me still.

"That’s cute," he murmurs, tilting his head. "You think you’re in control here."

I lean in, letting my lips brush against his, just enough to tease.

"I knowI’m in control."

Matteo hums, amusement flickering in his gaze.

"Is that so?"

"Mmhm."

With absolutely no warning whatsoever, he rolls his hips up against me, and I swear that my brain literally short-circuits.

"Oh," I breathe, hands fisting in his shirt.

"You were saying…?"

I clear my throat, gathering what little dignity I have left.

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