Husband With Benefits

"You want me to spy on my best friend? Do you think I am some specialized agent who can do that?" Isabella asked incredulously staring at Ian as if he had just asserted that he was The Pope.

Ian shook his head and sighed," Spy is such a harsh term, Bella. And it implies passing on information. You don’t need to do that. Nora is already under surveillance from some top class security experts. However, Demetri does not want her to know, for the time being. So, the best way is for someone to always be around her on the off chance that she decide to ditch the security or get suspicious. She’s got sharp instincts."

"She had to have those. Or else she would not survive this long. So, you want me to act a as a safety blanket to help maintain the ruse that all is well?"

"Somewhat like that. If Demetri or one of us stick to Nora all the while, she will get suspicious. But with you, she won’t be that wary, I think."

Isabella nodded and placed her hand on the table, tapping her nails nervously against the table as she questioned," I understand that. But what if someone slips through the security and does attack Nora? I am not even well trained like Nora to be able to protect her."

Ian caught her nervous gesture and caught her fingers with a comforting hand, gently stroking her wrist to soothe her nerves. "You won’t need to protect her. You are not being used as a shield. She’s under multiple layers of security at the moment. And on the off chance you do encounter any dangerous situations, do not try to engage. The two of you need to make a run for it. If she is alone, she will definitely try to fight it out. But if you are with her and she knows that you cannot fight, she will choose escape."

Isabella looked down at Ian’s hand on her and marvelled at how natural it felt. Dam* she needed to get her head checked. And why was he holding her hand for no reason? Even if he was comforting her, shouldn’t he take back his hand after a moment. But the tanned hand there seemed to have no intention of letting her fingers go...

Isabella shook her head and agreed while trying to lighten the atmosphere," Sigh! And here I was thinking of getting a cape and being the superhero to protect Nora and instead you’ve turned me into a sidekick who’s not supposed to fight crime but make a swift exit when things get dicey. Is that about right?"

Ian stared at Isabella and wondered why she sounded unhappy about this... Carefully, he used his words to gauge her mood," Are you unhappy about something?"

Isabella took a deep breath and reminded herself that she did not know Ian Frost well enough to judge him so she should not take offense at his thoughts, and slowly explain," I am not the kind to ditch my best friend, Ian. I don’t know what you expect me to do if things go south but I won’t leave Nora alone. And I do not want to become a liability."

"You won’t be." He swiftly assured her and continued," I’m only asking you to be a safety blanket. I assure you, Arabelle will not get within 1000 meters of her."