Novels by Eugene

Clara and Alexander walked slowly. Weaving through carts, bicycles, and muddy children, Ice cream cones in their hands.Clara looked up at him, A small smile at the edge of her lips. "What about cake?" She asked.Alexander took a small breath. He looked down at the half-eaten ice cream in his hands. "What about it?" he understood what she was asking. She wanted to know what other pleasures he had deprived himself of all these years. "Please tell me you enjoy cake sometimes"Alexander tried to remember the last time he had a piece of cake. Instead, he thought about all the lonely nights he had spent working, lying to himself that it was necessary."Sorry to disappoint you, Clara," he said slowly. The years of self-isolation dawning on him. When last did he take a casual stroll?"I'm going to have to fix that," Clara finished the last bit of her ice cream and reached for his hands. She intertwined their fingers, and he squeezed them gently."You're going to have so many pastries, you'll

Clara stood by the side of the road, her eyes searching for Alexander's car.A warm smile spread across her face when she spotted him. He parked nearby, and Clara walked up to him."Hi!" She gave a small excited wave.Alexander smiled. She was adorable in her yellow sundress, her hair braided into two pigtails."Hi," he said, falling into step beside her."Are you sure you weren't busy?" she asked, biting her lower lip.Alexander nodded."I wasn't."The leasing agent, a short plump woman in a sharp blazer, stood in front of the building with a folder tucked under her arm.She wiped sweat off her forehead with a small towel."Mr. and Mrs. Ford, lovely to meet you." She extended a hand to each of them before pushing the door open."You're going to love it. High ceilings, a newly renovated kitchen, and foot traffic that's to die for."Clara stepped in first.She was right, it was beautiful. Exposed brick, a wall of windows letting in soft afternoon light, the kitchen gleaming with equipm

Clara's heart skipped a beat when she heard the sound of Alexander's car pull in.She rushed to her window, watching him from behind the curtains.He was back early today. Her lips curled into a wide smile.She had spent the entire day wondering if she should call him.Outside, he approached the front door. He paused as he held the doorknob and looked up at her window.Clara backed away immediately.Why was she nervous?She had literally woken up in his bed that morning.She thought about how he'd made her promise to come back, and her face flushed red. She wanted him to pull her into his arms.She would go to him. She pulled open her door and met him standing right outside, arms raised like he was about to knock."Hi," he said, putting his hands down.Clara smiled."You're back early today."He loosened his tie and exhaled sharply."Not much to do." He didn't mention that he had raced through everything he was supposed to do.She wrapped her arms around his neck while he wrapped his

Light filtered through the curtains, landing on Clara's face. She blinked repeatedly and sat up.She stretched and looked around, realizing she had slept in his room.She looked to the other side of the bed, but it was empty.She felt her heart drop. He had left her. Then Clara heard the shower turn on and let out a sigh of relief.She pushed herself off the bed and took slow steps toward the bathroom door.She stopped right in front of the door and placed her palm on it.She wanted to walk in and maybe they'd have a bath together.She stepped back, pinching her arm.What was she thinking? She was acting like an obsessed pervert.She was about to turn back to the bed when the bathroom door pulled open.Alexander was completely drenched, his towel wrapped around his waist."Clara, you pervert. Were you spying on me?" He smiled.Clara's face turned hot red."I was not!""Looks that way.""I wasn't spying on you, why would I?" she hissed, arms crossed against her chest.Alexander reached

Just as Clara stepped out of the kitchen with a tray in her hands, the lights in the house went out.She exhaled hard. The day just seemed to get worse.Alexander turned on his phone light and walked toward her."Must be a short circuit. Come on." He grabbed the tray and led her up the stairs and into his room.He placed the tray down on his desk and turned on his lamp. It lit up the entire room.Clara stood awkwardly beside the door, playing with her fingers."We can stay here until it's fixed. It won't take long." He looked up at her, and she finally stepped fully into his room and closed the door behind her."I'd like to change," she murmured.He walked into his closet and pulled out an oversized shirt.Clara should have declined. She should have gone to her room and worn her own clothes, but it smelled like him, and she loved how he smelled.She took the shirt and walked into his bathroom to change.When she came back, he sat on the floor, leaning against the bed, the tray beside

Alexander adjusted his shirt and then pulled the door open, his mother was the first to step in, she rubbed his cheeks and planted a kiss on them. "oh my darling, I've missed you" she beamed. his father stepped in next, he gave Alexander a soft nod and closed the door behind him "where's that lovely wife of yours" his mother asked, taking off the shawl wrapped around her shoulders. Alexander looked up at the stairs and then back at his mother "she'll be here soon." he led them to the dinning, pulling out a seat for his mother. "look at this spread, I didn't know Clara could cook" his mother smiled,her eyes going over the three course meal Clara had prepared Alexander felt a surge of pride build inside him. The air in the was house thick with the scent of thyme, garlic and butter. Clara gently opened her room door, she took several deep breaths and rubbed sweaty palms against her red dress. she took careful steps down the stairs, she had met his parents before, but f

Tristan wasn't home when Odessa got there. A strong wave of relief washed over her. She took off her shoes and sank into the couch, staring up at the ceiling.The old her would have paced the entire house waiting for him. She would have called him over and over to know where he was, and eventually, she would have cried herself to sleep.Now, she wished he would never come home.She sat up and reached for her phone, scrolling through the long list of unread messages Tristan had left behind. Her eyes landed on the last few.Where are you?The meeting ended ten minutes ago.Answer your phone, Odessa.She was about to set the phone down when the screen lit up with his name.She swallowed hard and tapped the screen, bringing the phone to her ear."Where the hell did you go?" Tristan’s voice boomed through the speaker. She pulled the phone away from her ear and took a deep breath."I said, where did you go?" he demanded when she didn't answer right away."I came home," Odessa said, her voic

Odessa quickly ran through replies that would steer the conversation where she wanted it to go."None that I know of," she said.Silas placed both hands in his pockets and exhaled sharply."Why do you let him do it? Loyalty or stupidity?""Do what?" she asked.He narrowed his eyes, his gaze lingering on her face.Odessa could feel her breathing intensify.Then he turned to walk away. Odessa felt her heart drop.No, no. He was supposed to give her a card. What had she done wrong?He paused and turned back to her. He pulled out his card and placed it in her palm."I think you should go where your talents are appreciated."Silas's eyes remained on the card. He did not expect a call from her. She looked like she was exactly where she wanted to be.Still, it pained him that an idiot like Tristan would get to take her work and pass it off as his own.The few minutes he had spent with the man had been more than enough for him to understand what was going on.She rose to her feet, the card be

Odessa did exactly what her husband had asked her to do.She put on grey plaid trousers that hid her hips, tucked in a white button-down shirt, and paired them both with a vest.She pulled her hair into a sleek bun and pushed her feet into black flats.She looked at herself in the mirror. She did not put on any makeup. All she did was apply some lip balm so her lips would not dry out.She looked unremarkable, like she could walk into a room and nobody would notice.Exactly what Tristan wanted.She flinched when the door pushed open. Tristan walked in wearing a perfectly tailored suit. He adjusted his cuffs, and his gaze turned to her.He looked at her from head to toe several times before he gave a small nod of approval."Are you in good enough shape to handle it?" he asked, one eyebrow arched.Odessa pressed her lips into a flat line. She had lied about being ill.She nodded, and he turned away quickly. She followed behind him.Odessa realized she had severely miscalculated her traum

Odessa sat in the living room, still dazed by the fact that she was actually back six months before she died.The door pushed open and Tristan walked in, his tie loose and his suit jacket in his arms.Odessa felt her heart drop.She forced a warm smile when his eyes landed on her.They were cold. How long had he been looking at her like that? The emptiness behind his eyes made her uneasy.Why hadn't she noticed it before?The hope she held for him had made her see things that weren't there and ignore things that were.Like the lipstick stain on his collar.He spoke before she did."I'm sorry I wasn't home last night. I slept in the office. I got carried away."Odessa tried to hide her disgust. How many times had she accepted his blatant lies wrapped as apologies?"It's fine," she said, but her voice cracked. She cleared her throat immediately.He walked up to where she sat and placed a kiss on her cheek.She could smell her perfume.She wanted to scrub the skin where he had kissed her

Odessa's eyes shot open, her heart beating loudly, beads of sweat thick on her forehead.She was supposed to be dead. It was crazy, but her chest had slammed against her steering wheel, and broken glass from the windshield had pierced different parts of her body.But here she was, awake.She looked around at the familiar walls.In her own room.Her hands moved to her chest and then her face, but she did not feel any pain.She tried to stand, but black spots flickered across her vision.She stumbled and fell to the ground, her mind reeling. She had died. She was sure of it.She reached for her phone lying flat on the bedside table.It was 5 a.m. Her eyes moved to the date below.She shook her head and let the phone slip out of her hands.February.Six months before the accident and four months before she got pregnant.She wrapped her hands around her stomach and broke into quiet sobs.A wave of nausea washed over her, and she rushed to the bathroom. She leaned against the toilet seat a

Odessa would die today.She did not know that. Her thoughts were completely immersed in something else as she clutched her purse, lowered herself into her car, and turned on the engine. Her heart hammered loudly against her ribs.The only thing she felt was anger, all the pent-up anger that had built over her years as Tristan's wife.Was she a wife? She was a slave. She was the reason he was what he was today. She had built the company from the ground up, but nobody would believe her if she told them. They would call her a bitter woman, lying because she had found out her husband was cheating.Tears stung her eyes, and she quickly brushed them aside.She thought about how she had spent this morning wiping her own blood off the ground.Her child was gone, and she was left to deal with it alone.She had pulled out her phone to call her husband even though her hands were trembling and tears blurred her vision.When he finally picked up, he was out of breath, as if he had been running.He