the unfaithful husband in The Betrayal
What would a contemporary romance novel of betrayal and adultery be without a cheating spouse? Jesse St. Claire, the unfaithful husband in The Betrayal, is a complicated and enigmatic antagonist. Unlike Scott Andrews, the cheating husband in my earlier contemporary romance novel, The Deception, Jesse actually isn’t a player. In fact, he’s never cheated before. A highly successful motivational speaker, Jesse steadfastly claims to love his wife, in his own strange way.
Jesse has built his career on helping people take control of their lives. His own life, however, will spiral out of control when his wife, Emily, catches him in the act with Annette, his personal assistant. As Emily packs her bags and walks out the door, a determined Jesse tries to come up with a plan to win her back. Not only does he want to save his marriage, he also wants to save his career. Unfortunately for Jesse, bad habits prove difficult to break. His past soon comes back to haunt him, forcing him to once again betray his wife.
Jesse is a fictitious character, who, thank goodness, isn’t based on anyone I know. His inspiration came from anecdotal stories of unfaithful men who claimed to love their wives. However, for those of us who don’t cheat, this is something we can never fully understand.
Marina Martindale
The Betrayal is available on Amazon and Barnesandnoble.com.