Unfaithful

Copyright 2013 Joanne Clancy. All rights reserved.

Kindle Edition

This book is also available in print at Amazon.

Unfaithfully Yours

The first book in The Unfaithful Series

by Joanne Clancy

Praise for Unfaithfully Yours

I loved this book, I can't say it enough! The whole book is well written and has you entwined from the beginning. The lives of all these women are so different, but one man brings them together. Then they get sweet revenge, and Mark never saw it coming! While Rebecca, Shona, and Penelope form a bond through the rough times. The one question I'm left with is does Colm ever find out about t
he affair? Another book maybe??

The perfect ratio of love, sex and storyline, I highly recommend this book
.
~ Katy, Amazon

I love discovering authors that are new to me and then thoroughly relishing their books and this one is no exception. First off the bat, I related whole heartily to the strong women and the way they handled the sorry affair (pun intended). Good twist by the way as I didn't see that one coming but I won't spoil it and reveal which of those involved I mean, seeing as you'll have to read it to find out. It was set in Dublin which is one of my favorite places on earth and being half-Irish, well, I have family members who live there and they are just as feisty and full of life and learning as the ladies in this story. It all worked for me, from the beginning to the end and I left the novel with a satisfied nod and what more can you ask from a book? I will be reading more from Joanne Clancy in the future that's for sure.
~
Maureen Reil, Amazon

I received a free ebook copy of Unfaithfully Yours from the author. This is the first book I have read from this author, and I hope to read more from her in the future. This book is about a man Mark and his wife and mistresses and their relationships. I found this book very interesting. There are lots of twists and turns that keep the p
ace of the book moving and keep you wanting to read more to find out what happens. I loved the ending it was perfect!
~ Megan, Amazon

Discover other t
itles by Joanne Clancy at Amazon:

Unforgettable Embrace

The Wedding Day

My Love

The Unfaithful Series
:

Unfaithfully Yours, Book 1

Revenge, Book 2

Web of Deceit, Book 3 (Available January 2013)

And

The Secrets & Lies Trilogy
:

Secrets & Lies, Book 1

Aftermath, Book 2

Redemption, Book 3

Click here to purchase Joanne Clancy’s books

"Heaven has no rage like love to hatred turned, nor hell a fury like a woman scorned.”

William Congreve in “The Mourning Bride of 1697.”

"I'm in love with a married man," Shona Morgan sighed deeply and put her head in her hands. "Oh for heavens' sake, Shona," Jackie Fitzpatrick, Shona's older sister scolded her disparagingly. "How long have you been seeing him?"

"Off and on for the past six months," Shona mumbled.

"When it suits him, I suppose," Jackie said. She pulled up a chair at the kitchen table to sit beside her sister, whose blonde curls tumbled around her shoulders. Her face was still buried in her hands.

"I promised myself that I wouldn't fall in love with him, it was supposed to be a bit of fun, that's all, but I've fallen for him big time and I don't know what to do."

"You don't know what to do?" Jackie looked at Shona incredulously. "I can tell you what to do, Shona Morgan, it's quite simple really. You break up with him and you go and find a single man of your own."

"Everything is always black and white with you, Jackie!" Shona pushed her thick hair off her face and looked at her sister in annoyance. "It's easy for you, with your perfect husband and perfect children and altogether perfect life. Most of us have to kiss a lot of frogs before we finally meet our prince, but you were lucky enough to meet Colm in school and live happily ever after. You should try having your heart broken a few times before you start judging other people. It might make you more empathetic towards others, instead of swanning around all holier than thou."

She stood up abruptly, knocking her chair to the floor, grabbed her coat and handbag and stormed out of the house, slamming the front door dramatically behind her.

Jackie looked after her sister in shock. She felt like she'd been slapped in the face. Shona's harsh words left her reeling. She slowly got to her feet, feeling quite shaky and decided to make herself a cup of tea. Tea was her first answer to every problem. She went mechanically to the kettle and filled it with water, all the while her mind was racing.

How dare the cheeky little brat talk to me like that? I'm not the one sleeping with a married man! How dare she take her frustrations out on me, especially when I was only stating the obvious? Anyway, who does she think she is, sleeping with another woman's husband and expecting me to feel sorry for her? I feel sorry for his wife, poor woman.

"Mom, can you help me with my spellings, please?" Emmet, Jackie's six year old son, interrupted her thoughts.

"Ok, darling, I'll be there in a minute," she replied distractedly, as she stirred sugar into her tea. "Ouch!" she cried, taking a sip of the hot liquid. She'd forgotten to add milk and had promptly burnt her lip. Unexpected tears welled up in her eyes. Her sister's sharp words had really hurt. She gulped back her sobs, not wanting to cry in front of the children.

"Mommy!" Emmet called from the living room.

"Coming darling, coming," she called, blowing her nose and making her way into the study where her son was struggling with his homework. His little face was scrunched up in concentration. Jackie looked into her son's big brown eyes and her heart lifted momentarily.

"Give your old mom a hug.” She grabbed him in a tight bear hug.

"Mom, help me please," Emmet implored, struggling to break free of his mother's embrace. She ruffled his shiny black hair and spent the next while helping her son with spellings and math problems.

Meanwhile, Shona was sitting outside in her car, feeling very guilty for her outburst at Jackie. It was a relief to vent her pent- up frustrations at someone, but she knew it was unfair to have shouted at her sister. She didn't deserve it. After all, she could hardly blame Jackie for the fiasco that she'd made of her life so far; she’d done a perfectly good job of it all by herself. She stared unseeingly ahead.

Her mind was full of thoughts of Mark McNamara, her lover and the married man in question. He'd promised her on numerous occasions that he was leaving his wife for her, but he wanted his son's exams to be finished first. He would be devastated if he ruined Christopher's chances of getting into university.

Shona was tired of waiting. She had a sneaking suspicion that Mark would always have some excuse for not leaving his wife. "All I need is some time, sweetheart. Then we can be together forever" was his usual line to her when she tried to push him into leaving sooner. Christopher had finished his exams a month ago, and still Mark hadn't made any move to leave.

Shona believed that she loved Mark, but she was beginning to wonder if he really loved her and if she was simply addicted to the drama of their affair. There was something so dangerously exciting about sneaking away for naughty weekends together, eating at fancy restaurants, checking into hotels and spending hours making love. Mark was a very skilled lover. She'd never met anyone who could make her feel the way he made her feel. He could make her entire body tingle with a single touch of his fingers. It wasn't just his prowess as a lover that made him so attractive to her. It was more than that. She loved everything about him.

He was decisive and commanding, without being overbearing. She felt safe with him. He listened to her intently. He was a very interesting conversationalist, who had travelled extensively and had many fascinating stories about the people he'd met and the places he'd seen. They would sometimes spend hours just talking over a bottle of wine. Time seemed to race past when they were together, and when they were apart time stood still for her.

She was consumed with him. When she wasn't with him he was the only thing on her mind. She wished most of her life away until they were together again and hated when he left her behind, gently reminding her that he had to go back to his wife. She knew that was why she'd been so irritable with Jackie earlier. She and Mark had just spent the weekend together in her flat, and then he'd left her alone yet again.

Sometimes they would spend days together in her place, shut away from the outside world, making love, talking and acting like a “normal” couple. Mark would tell his wife that he had to go away for the weekend on some golfing jaunt or business trip and they would meet at the little pub on the corner of her road. It was a quiet, old man type of pub, with a roaring fire in the grate. The owner kept it open as a pastime, since his wife had died a few years previously. He claimed that the pub stopped him feeling lonely. Only a few regulars frequented the place now. It was a bit shabby, but very cosy, nonetheless.

Shona and Mark were almost guaranteed that they would not bump into anyone they knew there. They'd stayed in the pub until closing time the previous night, drinking cheap wine and chatting by the fire. Then they'd gone back to her place, closing the door on the world until Sunday afternoon, when Mark had had to leave her yet again.

"I'll tell Rebecca about us very soon, just a little more time darling," were his parting words to Shona.

Shona had tried to busy herself about the flat for a few hours that morning but soon got bored of cleaning, so she'd driven to her sister's house to try to distract herself from the emptiness she always felt when Mark was gone. She knew it was unfair to vent at Jackie, but she'd been looking for sympathy, and she'd been in no mood for her sister's supercilious, smug attitude. Jackie always had a solution for every problem. She could never simply listen and make soothing, reassuring noises.

Sometimes all Shona needed was a hug, that was it, nothing more, nothing less. She knew what she should or should not be doing, and being lectured by Miss Perfect was irritating and not a little patronising.

What does Jackie know about love and life anyway?
Shona thought.
She's probably never done anything remotely wrong in her entire life
. She felt quite envious of her sister at times, but then there were other occasions when she wondered how she could stand the downright predictability of her life.

Her mobile phone beeped, shaking her out of her reverie. She rummaged in her handbag for her phone and flipped it open. It was a text message from Mark. She felt her heart lift as she read his words.