Chapter 18

Francesca leaned against the door of her apartment, she had packed everything and was now staring at a practically bare apartment. Luckily she had only stayed there for a week so she had no emotional attachment to the place and she didn't have that many things yet.

She had hired movers to take her things from the apartment her brother's had given her to the one Edward had arranged. According to the location Edward had given it was quite close to the office, which Francesca preferred.

Once everything was ready to go Francesca inspected her car. She had already found 3 GPS trackers on it and she was now doing a final run to make sure that her brothers couldn't follow her.

"Miss Rocci." Dom called out as he approached her.

"Oh, Dom. What's up?" Francesca asked.

"Do you need help miss? Is your car broken?" Dom asked. He had noticed Francesca checking out her car and thought that it had somehow broken down.

"No, it's all fine. I'm just checking how well made it is." Francesca said with a grin.

"Alright Miss. Are you heading out?" Dom asked.

"Yes, I'm going to the office. No need for you to follow me. Just keep an eye out in case someone tries to break into my apartment." Francesca said with a shrug.

Behind Dom she could see that the movers had already placed all her boxes in the truck and they were ready to go. Francesca had told them that she was running away from an abusive relationship so she couldn't let people notice that she was leaving.

The movers agreed to simply follow Francesca once her car left the parking lot.

"Wow, someone's moving out today." Dom exclaimed as he saw the truck.

"Hmmm, yeah. They were on my floor. Anyway, I've got to go Dom. I'll be coming home late. I'll drop by the mansion tonight for dinner." Francesca said as she got into her car. She didn't want Dom sounding any alarms when she didn't return to her apartment that night.

The apartment Edward had arranged for her was even bigger than the one she was staying in. It had three bedrooms, a maid's room, and even an office. The master bedroom had its own walk in closet and it seemed Edward had intended for her to stay in the master.

When she had finally settled everything Edward called her.

"Hey, have you moved in?" Edward asked in a gentle tone.

"Yes. This place is quite big. It's bigger than the one my brothers arranged for me." Francesca said.

"I think your brothers arranged that apartment to get you to quit." Edward teased.

"Probably, but it was still luxurious too. I really only need one room." Francesca said as she sat on the couch in the living room.

"I assigned a maid to cook and to clean for you. I know you aren't used to doing things on your own." Edward had considered the fact that Francesca had been brought up like a princess, never having to cook or clean. "I will visit just to check on you, but other than that you have the freedom to do as you want. You can even redecorate the place if you want."

"Edward this is too much." Francesca said as she blushed, luckily Edward wasn't there to see it. Somehow she had found herself being moved by the man's action.

"Hey, this isn't some free meal." Edward said with a laugh over the phone. "I'm sure you will be one of our brightest stars some day. So just think of this as an advance on your future successes."

"I'm serious Edward. Thank you." Francesca said as she smiled on the other end of the call.

"Well, you're welcome." Edward said kindly. "I'll pick you up at 7pm tonight. I want to take you somewhere before we go to the Rocci Mansion."

"Alright. I'll see you tonight." Francesca said sweetly over the phone as she dropped the call.

"Oh, Miss, you're here!" A woman in her 50s said as she entered the apartment. "I'm sorry I wasn't here to welcome you, I went out to buy some ingredients for lunch. I thought that since it was your first meal here it should be something special." The woman said as she brought the food over to the kitchen.

Francesca followed her and was surprised at the size.

"My name is Ruth, I live down the street, I'll come over to cook your meals and to clean the house." Ruth said as she took out the ingredients to cook lunch.

"Nice to meet you Ruth, my name is Francesca R-" Francesca paused as she realized that she should get used to introducing herself under a different name. "Francesca Vernon." Francesca said, correcting herself.

"It's nice to meet you Miss Francesca." Ruth said with a warm smile. "I'll call you when lunch is ready. You can go and rest."

Francesca nodded and headed over to her room to rest.