At long last, my upcoming contemporary romance novel, The Betrayal is back from the editor.
The Betrayal is a story of lies, deceit and infidelity. However, I was facing some real-life challenges of my own as I was writing the story, which resulted in my having to set the manuscript aside for weeks at a time. Then, when it was finally complete, my editor found some continuity errors, so the last few chapters had to be revised. Not to worry. We were both delighted at how much those changes improved the storyline.
Unfortunately, I can’t divulge too much. It would spoil the story. I can, however, give you a sneak peek.
Marina Martindale
a sample read from The Betrayal
The knot in Emily’s stomach grew tighter as she pulled into the driveway and pressed the remote. The garage door slowly rolled up, revealing Jesse’s silver Lexus sedan parked inside. Her heart sank. Annette must have taken him to the airport. She took a deep breath and pulled into her old spot, taking her empty suitcase from the trunk, along with several flat boxes and a few rolls of packing tape. The others helped her carry everything inside.
“What a beautiful home,” said Andrea.
“Yes, it was.” Emily led them down the hallway and opened the first door on her right. Inside stood a small, antique desk and chair. Her computer sat on top of the desk, with an electric keyboard set up on the opposite wall.
“Wow look at that,” said Andrea as she walked up to the bookcases full of trophies.
“Those are all from her piano competitions,” said Megan. “She started doing them when she was in the fourth grade.”
“Third,” said Emily.
Megan shrugged and smiled. “Okay, I stand corrected. It was the third grade, but it was also before I met her. She was still competing and still winning trophies in high school, when I finally did meet her. I even went to some of her competitions.”
While Megan was talking, Emily grabbed the tape and started putting boxes together. “Uh-oh. I forgot the packing paper. If you’ll excuse me, I’ll be right back.”
“Need help?” asked Sean.
Emily gave him a smile. “Sure.”
They stepped out, returning a moment later with the packing paper and the remaining flat boxes. Emily instructed them on how to pack the trophies before she grabbed her suitcase and headed upstairs. Her body tensed up as she opened the bedroom door. Inside, the bed was freshly made, and she spotted a small, hand-written note left on top of her pillow.
I know what I did was wrong. I’ve fired Annette and I’ll be looking for a new assistant as soon as I return. Please, don’t leave me. I still love you, and I’ll do whatever it takes to win you back.
Emily started to crumple the paper, but then thought better of it. She dropped it back on the pillow and packed up the rest of her clothes as quickly as she could. Before long the bag was filled. Zipping it shut, she jumped at an unexpected sound. A man’s voice was calling her name.
“Whoops. Sorry, Emily. I didn’t mean to startle you.”
“It’s okay, Sean. I guess I’m a little on edge today.”
“Perfectly understandable. Do you want me to take the bag downstairs for you?”
“Please do. It’s probably a little too heavy for me to carry. I just need to grab a box for the other things I have left, and then I’ll be done up here.” A wave of sadness came over her as she looked around what had been her bedroom for more than three years. Once she was done, she doubted she would ever see it again.
“Are you alright?” asked Sean.
Emily tried to shrug it off. “I’m fine. Let’s take that bag downstairs.”
Update
The Betrayal is now available on Amazon and Barnesandnoble.com.
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