Novels by Louise

“What in God’s name is happening out here?” my father questioned, clearly baffled and annoyed. His voice was sharp, the irritation in his tone unmistakable as he looked from Russo to me and back again.It was the worst way to be caught. My hands were still on Russo’s bare chest, and he was only in his towel while I stood there in my skimpy pyjamas. The dimly lit corridor felt suffocating as I tried to pull my hands away, but it was too late. My father’s glare felt like it could burn right through us. I could barely breathe, knowing I was standing there like this with no explanation to offer. My heart pounded in my chest, and every nerve in my body screamed for me to run and hide, but I was frozen in place, unsure of how to make this nightmare stop.“Uhmm…” I started, my mind racing for something, anything, to say. But nothing came.“Victoria, what the hell is going on out here?” my father asked again, his voice rising, now laced with frustration and confusion. His eyes flicked between

“Actually, you wanted to talk. What was it that you wanted to say to me?” I asked, trying to bring us back to the moment before everything got tangled up.“Uhmm…” he stammered, clearly not focused, his mind still reeling from the tension in the air.He turned away, facing the wall as he shoved his hand in his pants, clearly trying to adjust the situation. After a few moments, he turned back to face me, the bulge now less visible, though his flushed face told the story of how much he was trying to regain composure.“I forgot,” he sighed, running a hand through his hair in frustration.“Really?” I raised an eyebrow, not sure if I believed him.“Yeah, I’m sorry. I lost focus once I saw you like that.” He sighed again, his gaze drifting.“It’s okay,” I nodded, trying to brush it off.“Tori!” I heard Roni’s voice calling from outside her bedroom, interrupting the moment.I slowly walked away from Russo, the weight of the moment still hanging in the air. As I left the room, I found Roni sta

"Roni!" my father called out, his voice firm yet laced with urgency.But she didn’t respond. It was as if she hadn’t heard him at all—or maybe she was choosing not to."Roni!" he called again, louder this time, his tone edged with frustration and concern.Reluctantly, Roni turned and walked away, heading toward my father, leaving me alone to stare at Russo. I hesitated, unsure whether I wanted to talk to him and risk hearing what Roni might say later—or simply ignore him altogether.“Tori, could we talk for a moment?” Russo asked again, his tone firm yet uncertain.“Uh… let me get dressed first, and then we’ll see,” I replied quickly, not waiting for his response before turning and walking away.I hurried to my bedroom, grabbing the nearest outfit and slipping into it in a rush. Just as I finished, the door creaked open, and Roni stepped inside, closing it firmly behind her.“So, looks like we’re roommates for the night,” Roni whispered.I frowned. “What do you mean?”“Russo is stayin

My father’s voice rang with shock. “Russo?”“Eli…” Russo mumbled, his words slurred.I stiffened. Was he drunk?“Are you drunk?” my father questioned, his tone laced with concern.Russo slid off the couch and stumbled around the living room.“Roni, you’re also here,” he said, his words a bit unsteady.“And now I am going,” she replied bitterly, turning to walk away.I couldn’t tear my eyes away from him, still in shock, wondering what on earth was going on with him.“What happened, Alessandro?” my father asked, his voice filled with concern.“Me and Maya got into an argument again,” Russo finally responded.Maya?It felt like every day I was learning something new.I glanced at my dad, who slowly turned to face me, as if embarrassed on behalf of Russo.“Are you drunk?” my father asked again, a bit more firmly.“No, just tipsy and annoyed,” Russo muttered, sounding almost apologetic.Russo finally made eye contact with me, and instantly, I got goosebumps, but at the same time, a wave o

My eyes widened when Joey finished speaking and then continued to speak. Bash and Roni came back into the kitchen, holding a few more dishes that were used during the dinner. I now could not take my eyes off them after hearing what Joey had just said. I tried to imagine them dating each other or at least having anything else more than a friendship. “Joey, that’s enough,” Bash said sounding irritated when he found her still adding a few more drops of vodka in her cup. “Could I have another sip, please,” Roni said as she reached out for the cup. I watched in surprise as Roni drank some of the weird combination in Joey’s cup and did not even cringe. It was as if she regularly did this. “Are you sure you don’t want even a sip?” Joey offered me the cup as she handed it to me. I shrugged and slowly walked closer to her and took the cup. I took a sip and surprisingly it did not taste weird. “So, how does it taste?” Bash asked before I could even swallow it. “It tastes good,” I answer

“Uhm…” I froze. “Oh please don’t act shocked or anything.” she laughed. She pulled out more dishwashing liquid and handed it to me. “No, I am genuinely confused.” I sighed“Why though? Weren’t the two of you sticking your tongues down each other’s throats or something?” she asked as she laughed a bit.“When?” I questioned“When you went to the bathroom,” she replied “Oh no! We did not. He only escorted me and then we returned to the dining room.” I responded. “Really? So, he was not lying?” she asked “Yeah, we did not kiss or anything like that,” I answered “Dammit! Now your sister owes me like fifty bucks or probably even more.” she groaned. “Anyway, let’s go back to the kitchen. We will continue this conversation later.” We walked back to the kitchen with me feeling so confused. So that is what the two of them were probably betting on. We walked back to the kitchen to find Roni and Bash giggling about something. “Are we interrupting something?” Jo asked as she started lau

“My my, this looks cosy.” Dominic faked a chuckle. I broke eye contact with Joshua and hurried to the kitchen and reached out for a bowl. Because Dominic is much taller than me and has a certain order for how his things should be organised, he placed all the bowls towards the back, causing one of them to slip out of my hands and fall to the ground. “HOMER!” Dominic yelled at me while I stared at the broken pieces of glass right at my feet. “I am so sorry.” I hurried off to get the broom and dustpan. “It was an accident.” Joshua sighed as he came out of the bathroom to peep at what happened. Dominic, on the other hand, did not look too pleased. He had already worn his grumpy face by then and was starting to growl. “I am so so sorry, sir.” I apologised as I started to sweep up the mess. “Why are you so clumsy?!” Dominic asked angrily“Look, these things happen.” Joshua started to defend me“Joshua, it’s okay. You don’t need to speak up for me.” I quickly snapped at him“I am only

“I am sorry sir, for lying earlier. Emma Scorsone is a good friend of mine.” I finally answered “Then why do the records say that she is your sister?” he asked. I felt like everything was just getting worse and worse and going against me. Anything I said would just make everything much worse. I imagined if I had just settled for telling the truth from the start, I would not be in such a messy situation. “I don’t know. Maybe when she was arriving, she must have said something about being my sister to Wilbur and Stanley. I am not sure.” I twisted some few words around hoping it would not come back to haunt me. “Okay,” he said I remained standing above him for some more time. “Can I help you with something?” he asked “I just wanted to know where else the cameras are,” I said worriedly “They are only in the kitchen, living room, dining room and like the corridors. I am thinking of installing at least one or two in here,” he replied “So, there is none in the room I sleep in?” I as

“Homer, who is Emma Scorsone?” he asked again, only his face was starting to get a bit more serious.I knew I was definitely getting into more trouble by pretending to not know who he was talking about. “Uhm…” I still wondered what I was going to say“You know, this could end quicker if you just told the truth.” he sighed “I don’t know who Emma Scorsone is, sir?” I lied quickly “Really?” he queried I nodded. I wondered how he discovered the name and why he was asking me about her. Did the Stanley or Wilbur tell him about Emma coming over? I assumed he had surveillance cameras around the house but he would have probably asked who I was with and not the name. So, I decided that Stanley or Wilbur most probably told him about her. “Finish cleaning up the dishes and then we will come and have a talk,” he said and walked out of the kitchen. I gulped nervously. I had no way out. In times like that, I wished I did not live with him because I would have probably ran off and pretended to

“What a day!” the sound of Dominic’s voice scared me from a deep sleep. “Homer, you can’t be sleeping on the couch!”I slowly opened my eyes and rubbed them to find an angry Dominic standing above me. “There is a room for you to do all the sleeping you want to do,” he said. “I am really sorry, sir.” I stood up and apologised. He walked away, clearly irritated while I debated if I should go and take a nap, or just shower and get out of my maid uniform and call it an early night. “I am so exhausted!” Dominic groaned “How was it?” I asked “It was actually really lovely. I enjoyed it. We went to an art gallery. Her younger sister just actually just opened an art gallery so we saw a few pieces, might buy a few for my house and then we went for lunch to this Japanese restaurant. I was not really a fan of the sushi. I have better sushi but she enjoyed it and then after all that, we went to the park and walked.” he answered “So, it was a date?” I asked “No, no. Not a date. I am not th

As soon as Dominic’s car disappeared, Emma’s car showed up, all before Stan and Wilbur could close the gate. So, Dominic must have passed Emma. “Ma’am, you’re lost. You might want to make a U-turn.” Wilbur said“No, I am not lost. I believe I am at the right place,” she answered. Emma was the last person Stanley and Wilbur wanted to fight with. Even if they were just doing their job, she would still manage to find a way to fight them. “Do you know anyone here?” Stanley asked “I am here to see my sister, Harper Holmes.” She answered “HOLMES!” Wilbur called my name. I walked out of the house nervously. I did not know what Stan or Wilbur could do now that Dominic was not around and Rebecca had stopped showing up. I did not know if Dominic had left either of them in charge. “Yes?” I replied as soon as I reached them. “Well, don’t you look adorable in your little uniform,” Emma said excitedly “Is this your sister?” Wilbur asked. I mean technically she was not my sister but if I s

“I am sorry sir,” I blushed as I asked him to repeat what he had just said “I was saying that we need to come up with a plan for your sleepwear,” he repeated while his eyes traced all over my body once again“Why?” I looked down at my outfit as I felt my cheeks heat up. He kept quiet and continued to look at me. “Because…” he finally shrugged “Because what?” I questioned, “Did Sadie say something?” “No, no.” he laughed “Okay, the both of you guys need to stop with your weird competition or whatever it is.” I wondered what he meant. Did Sadie also ask if I had said something to him? I mean, most definitely if he was saying that we need to stop with our competition. I did not want to ask him what he meant by the competition because he would start talking about that and forget the whole conversation about sleepwear. “So, why are we coming up with a plan for my sleepwear?” I dared to ask again“I don’t know. I just guess we should come up with one.” he shrugged “Then what if I ref