Chapter 218: Chapter 218: The Man Who Stole My Temper
Adrian swallowed hard, Maya’s lecture flashing through his mind. He forced his pride down. "Fine! I’m sorry! I shouldn’t have done that, and I know I was—"
"Keep quiet!" Matteo shouted, the sudden burst of volume making Adrian flinch. "You had your little fun doing it without thinking about my feelings for a single second! You made me look like a fucking fool in front of my men!"
Matteo gestured sharply toward the parked SUVs behind them. "Imagine my own operatives witnessing you throwing me out of a car. What the hell is wrong with you, Adrian?"
"I said I’m sorry!" Adrian murmured. He reached out to clutch Matteo’s hand again, his voice cracking. "I am truly, deeply sorry, Matteo."
Matteo shoved his hand away, his expression hardening. "Enough. You knew exactly what you were doing."
Adrian’s guilt instantly morphed back into dramatic defiance. He threw his hands up in the air. "I already apologized! What else do you want me to do? You just want to keep raising your voice at me!"
Adrian took a dramatic step backward. "Fine. I was entirely wrong. But since you refuse to accept my apology, I’ll just walk home. You can go ahead with your men. Consider it my chunk of punishment!"
Matteo stared at him, utterly dumbfounded. "Adrian, don’t start—"
Without another word, Adrian spun on his heel and began marching down the dark, empty road. After a short distance, he suddenly came to a halt.
For a split second, Matteo thought he was going to turn back, but instead, Adrian bent down. With aggressive, jerky movements, he ripped off his racing shoes and peeled off his socks, tossing them onto the gravel.
He turned around, facing Matteo with bare feet on the cold asphalt. "Are you satisfied now?" Adrian yelled dramatically. "I’ll walk all the way back to the estate with nothing on my feet!"
Matteo clutched the sports car, slamming his fist against the metal structure as he questioned his entire life choices.
This dramatic brat was going to be the death of him.
Adrian turned around and continued walking, his bare feet slapping against the road.
As he walked, he began muttering loudly enough for his voice to carry down the highway.
"Worst boyfriend ever... an actual monster..."
He shook his head dramatically.
"Fine, go ahead and yell at me! I told him I was wrong. I literally apologized, and he still raised his voice."
Adrian placed a hand over his chest as if he had suffered a great betrayal.
"What a terrible boyfriend. Good thing I finally got to see his true colors."
Matteo let out a ragged breath, the anger completely draining out of him, replaced by absolute defeat. He couldn’t leave him walking barefoot in the dark.
"Baby, stop!" Matteo called out, his voice softening. "I’m sorry. Let’s just talk about it."
"Never mind!" Adrian shouted back over his shoulder, not slowing his pace. "I’ll be perfectly fine!"
A sudden realization struck Matteo, and a helpless, disbelieving laugh escaped his lips. "You’re supposed to be throwing a tantrum, yet you didn’t even drop the keys!"
Adrian paused his march just long enough to shout back fiercely, "This is my car! There is no way in hell I’m leaving the keys behind!"
Matteo shook his head, a fond, weary smile breaking through his serious facade. "Okay, baby, I’m sorry. Just wait right there... I’m coming to carry you."
Matteo began walking down the road toward him, pausing briefly to scoop up Adrian’s abandoned racing shoes and socks from the gravel.
Adrian heard Matteo’s footsteps approaching behind him.
Part of him wanted to stop and wait, but he also didn’t want to make the forgiveness too easy.
A mischievous idea immediately popped into his head.
Deciding to add a little more drama to the situation, Adrian deliberately stomped his foot against the ground, pretended to trip, and let out a sharp cry.
"Ow!"
Hearing the shout, Matteo broke into a sudden run, his heart jumping into his throat.
"I told you to wait! Why do you always have to be so stubborn?"
Adrian immediately bent over, clutching his ankle and whimpering as Matteo rushed to his side.
"It hurts..." Adrian whined, looking up with big, glossy eyes. "My toes."
Matteo knelt, inspecting the perfectly fine toes and ankle before looking up at his dramatic partner. "Let me carry you."
"No!" Adrian refused, pulling his leg away and pushing himself up onto his feet. He took two clumsy steps, intentionally limping and hopping on one leg to make it look as pathetic as possible. "I’ll keep going. I don’t need your help."
Matteo stood up and let out a long, defeated sigh. At this point, I’ve already accepted my fate, he thought.
Matteo stepped forward and effortlessly closed the gap between them. In one smooth, practiced motion, he bent down and scooped Adrian off his feet. He carried the racing shoes in one hand while holding Adrian securely against his chest as though he weighed nothing at all.
"Put me down! I told you I can walk!" Adrian protested, weakly thumping Matteo’s chest, though he immediately looped his arms around Matteo’s neck for balance.
"Relax," Matteo murmured, adjusting his grip as he began walking back toward the cars. "I already know nothing is wrong with your leg. Stop being stubborn and stop pretending."
Hearing that, Adrian’s pout instantly dissolved. A brilliant, shameless smile broke across his face, his eyes sparkling with pure mischief.
"You’re my boyfriend," he purred affectionately, leaning his head against Matteo’s shoulder. "You know me too well."
Matteo let out a low chuckle and leaned down to press a kiss to Adrian’s forehead.
"You are an incredibly stubborn, hopelessly spoiled brat."
Adrian chuckled, tightening his hold around his neck as the security team watched them from a respectful distance.
"But you love me exactly the way I am, right?"
Matteo looked down at him, his dark eyes softening into pure adoration as he carried him under the starlight.
"Yes, baby. I do. I swear you must have used some kind of spell on me."
Adrian grinned shamelessly, looping his arms tighter around Matteo’s neck. "Yes, I did. I used my face and my body on you."
"No," Matteo corrected softly, a faint, captivated smile breaking through his serious facade. "You used absolutely everything about you on me."
Adrian’s smile widened into something radiant. He pressed his cheek against Matteo’s chest, listening to the steady, comforting beat of his heart. "You’re the best boyfriend in the whole world."
Matteo rolled his eyes, though the affection in his gaze gave him away. "Oh, really? Didn’t you just call me a terrible boyfriend about a few minutes ago?"
"That wasn’t me," Adrian dismissed airily, waving a hand as if erasing the past. "I was only saying things. It wasn’t actually true."
Matteo shook his head, a low chuckle vibrating in his chest as they finally closed the distance back to the vehicles.
"Kiss me," Adrian demanded softly, tilting his chin up.
Matteo stopped walking just a few feet from the sports car. He looked down at the beautiful, demanding man in his arms and leaned down, capturing his lips in a slow, deep kiss that wiped away the very last traces of their argument.
When they parted, Adrian rested his forehead against Matteo’s. "I love you so much, big baby."
"I love you more, my little headache," Matteo countered, his voice dripping with absolute devotion.
He nudged Adrian’s nose with his own.
"My spoiled brat. My stubborn menace. But above all... I love you more because you’re my happy pill. No matter how bad my day is, you’re the one thing that always makes it better."
Adrian couldn’t help but giggle...
