Patrick Lacaille
Set in Dallas, Texas, Preconceived Notions is the story of four friends who have reached a point in their lives where they seemingly ‘have it all’ – good career, loving spouse, house in the suburbs. But when one of them decides one day that there has to be more to life, a decision is made that alters all four of their lives forever. A tale of love, friendship and family and how the decisions we make every day impact all those around us, Preconceived Notions is a ‘slice of life’ view of relationships in a modern world.
Preconceived Notions is the first novel from author Patrick Lacaille. After a twenty year hiatus from writing, his short story “Elderly Man behind the Counter (with Apologies to Eddie)” and his poem “Hungry” were published in the Mensa writing group’s magazine Calliope in 2005. Born and raised in the northeast, he moved to north Texas in 2001 and calls Dallas home.
Emily and Ryan’s lives had degenerated to an emotional cesspool polluted with anger, hate, jealousy, and loneliness. As their relationship grew colder and more distant, they both retreated to the safety and security of their respective old habits. For Ryan, that meant working long hours, coming home late, and avoiding contact with his wife. For Emily, it meant trying to spend more time with her true love, Tyler. She desperately looked for any excuse to spend time with her teenage son at a time when he was looking for any excuse to break away from the adults in his life. The timing couldn’t have been worse for Emily – a fight with her husband running side by side with her son preparing to leave for college.
The days were growing darker for them. Ryan had begun regularly sleeping on the couch over a month ago. It had been so long since he had made love to his wife, he had forgotten what her body felt like against his. He had forgotten the scent of her shampoo or her perfume. He had forgotten how he used to thrill at her soft, delicate touch or how her tender love could make him feel like the most important person in the world. He had forgotten how holding her close in bed and whispering secrets he kept hidden from the rest of the world could liberate his soul and how the trust and safety he felt with her could fuel his visions of the future. In reality, it was only a handful of months that they had been struggling but affairs of the heart had very little to do with reality. The best parts of their marriage seemed an eternity gone with no prospect of ever returning.
