The Arrangement

Chapter Seventeen

Taylor's POV

"Does it hurt here?" Nurse Keller asks me, putting pressure on the side of my stomach. I shake my head, not feeling any pain at all. "What about here?" She asks again.

"No," I answer.

"And what about right...here?" She asks. I shake my head again, sighing in relief. The pain is gone... "That's great Taylor! You're really showing some progress!" She exclaims and smiles, jotting something down on her clipboard.

"When can I get discharged?" I smile back, laying back down. She puts down her clipboard, inspecting my stomach for any bruises before looking back at me.

"Anytime you'd like. Just make sure you take your painkillers every few hours," she explains, grabbing her clipboard again and writing down some more notes.

"Thank you again, for everything," I smile, getting under the warm covers.

"No problem sweetie. It's my job to make sure my patients feel comfortable here," she smiles back, opening the door and leaving me alone to think.

I decided I'm not going to tell Sophia I'm hanging out with Nicolas and Gio or helping them out with their mafia. If I'm already in danger, she could be too, and I don't want to see her hurt, even if it means keeping it a secret and lying to her.

"What are you thinking about Thomas?" Nicolas asks me as he enters the room.

"Sophia," I sigh. I hate that I'll have to keep lying to her. I'd rather tell her the truth so that it's no surprise when she does find out what I've been doing and why I've been hanging out with Nicolas.

"I'm sorry Taylor, but this is the way it has it has to be for now," he explains sighing, his forest green eyes staring back at me.

"I understand," I say, trying to get out of bed, my legs shaking. "Can you take me home now?" I ask.

"Yeah," he says, putting his phone in his back pocket and walking towards me, putting on his leather jacket. "Need help?" He chuckles, sending shivers down my spine.

"Yeah," I answer. He offers me his tatted hand. I smile and gladly except it.

He pulls me up and I stumble a bit, my legs wobbly making me almost falling over. He grabs my waist, stopping me from falling.

We're so close to the point that I can feel his minty breath fan my face.

"Nicolas..." I exhale, our eyes locking. I bite my lip nervously, his eyes falling down to my lips before looking back up at my eyes.

"Yeah?"

He doesn't let me answer and instead slowly leans forward, hesitating a bit. I stand on my tip-toes and lean in, closing the small distance and connecting our lips in a soft, passionate kiss.

He pushes me against the wall gently and groans, his grip tightening on my waist. I wrap my arms around his neck, deepening the kiss as I hurriedly take off his leather jacket.

He wraps his hands around the back of my thighs, picking me up. I wrap my legs around his waist, moaning into the kiss.

He lays me down on the bed, sitting in between my legs and caressing the side of my cheek. I feel something hard hit my thigh and I gasp.