a lead character in The Betrayal
I wanted make Emily St. Claire, one of the lead characters in my contemporary romance novel, The Betrayal, a loving, devoted wife. Emily is happily married to Jesse, her college sweetheart. She also put her dream of becoming a concert pianist on hold, working as an office manager so Jesse could launch his own career. Now he’s become successful, and it’s her turn to pursue her dream.
Unfortunately for Emily, her world is about to turn upside down. She’ll get the shock of her life when she discovers Jesse has been unfaithful. However, Emily is nothing if not resilient. She returns home to her father, and her piano, determined to follow her dreams. Then her life will soon take another unexpected turn when unforeseen tragedy leads her to Kyle, a man who’ll love her unconditionally. But first Kyle will have to save her from another enemy, determined to destroy her.
I wanted Emily to be the polar opposite of Maggie Andrews, the betrayed wife in The Deception. Both women have been deeply hurt by their husband’s infidelity. Maggie, however, is a bitter and unhappy woman who uses her husband’s affair as an excuse to destroy another person’s life. She believes doing so will somehow make her feel vindicated. Emily, on the other hand, tries her best to handle her husband’s infidelity with grace and dignity. Unfortunately for her, another man will take advantage of her vulnerability. She will make a decision she will later regret, and that others will use against her.
While Emily is a fictitious character, the inspiration for her story came from two different friends. One caught his ex-wife in the act. The other’s mother was unfaithful, and it tore the family apart. Adultery doesn’t just harm the injured spouse. It affects others as well, and both The Betrayal, and The Deception, are stories about the long term consequences of infidelity.
Marina Martindale
The Betrayal is available on Amazon and Barnesandnoble.com.