𝙁𝙤𝙧𝙘𝙚 𝙁𝙞𝙚𝙡𝙙 - Charles Leclerc (CL16) [Book 1]

𝙲𝚑𝚊𝚙𝚝𝚎𝚛 𝚏𝚒𝚏𝚝𝚢-𝚜𝚒𝚡

I stand in front of Mrs. Marti's apartment door and wait for her to open the door for me.

I look at my Apple Watch. 1:45 pm. We were supposed to meet at 1:30pm, but when I knocked on her apartment door for the 20th time and get no answer, I start to get nervous.

I decide to go into the lobby to ask Mr Beaumont, the concierge, if he has heard anything from her.

"Bonjour Ms Panza. Nice to see you again. How are you doing?" He greets me as I enter the lobby.

I smile at the older gentleman, "Bonjour Mr Beaumont. I'm doing good. I hope you are as well? Tell me, have you seen Mrs Marti today? I was supposed to meet with her at 1:30 pm, but she won't answer her door."

"I'm sorry, but I haven't seen her yet today," he looks at me apologetically, "Have you tried calling her yet?"

I nod and look at my phone screen. I haven't had any luck there either. I'm about to dial her number again when she rushes through the front door.

"Liana, ma cherie. I'm so sorry, but I ran out of wine and then I ran into an old friend at the shops." She links her arm with me and leads me towards the stairs. You have to hand it to the old lady, even in her late 70s she's probably fitter than me.

I wave goodbye to Mr Beaumont over my shoulder and follow her up the stairs.

"Mrs. Marti, I was worried about you." At the sound of her nickname she rolls her eyes.

"Oh, sweetheart, you don't have to worry about me. I tried making pasta pomodoro e basilico, but you know, I'm not the best cook. But at least now we have wine."

This woman will be the death of me. I'm dying of worry and she goes out to buy wine and doesn't even tell me. We enter her apartment, a beautiful large apartment with a view of the harbour. I don't want to know how expensive this property was, but the investment was definitely worth it.

"Just take a seat in the living room cherie, I'll bring us some food."

I look at her hesitantly. "I can help you, Mrs. Marti."

She just waves it off. "Don't be silly, sit down."

In the living room I make myself comfortable on the large, soft sofa. A little later, Mrs Marti comes into the room with two plates of pasta. Her cooking is always a surprise because as she said, she is not the best but it's so cute how she insists to cook Raegan and I something fresh whenever we come around.

"I'll get the wine quickly. Would you like to turn on the television? Channel 3."

As instructed, I turn on the television and pause when I see what's on Channel 3. She can't be serious?!

"Mrs Marti, are you sure Channel 3 is right?"

Confused, she comes back into the living room, holding a glass of wine in each of her hands. "Yes, Formula 1 is always on Channel 3." I see her eyes dart towards the screen. "Oh, perfect." She sits down next to me with a grin. She is just in time for the formation lap.

"Mrs Marti, since when have you been interested in Formula 1?" She never mentioned it before.

"My husband used to watch it all the time. We had tickets for Monaco and Monza every year until he passed away. Well, and to be honest you can't really escape it here in Monaco. Besides, I have to see how my adoptive son-in-law, Lando, is doing." She starts eating with relish while I sit next to her with my mouth open.

I'm trying to stay away from Charles and now I'm sitting here with my oldest friend - see what I did here - and I have to watch what he does for two hours.