Florists, jewelers and candymakers do a brisk business on Valentine's Day, the holiday for sweethearts.

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Is Your Lover Being Faithful?

But, strangely, it is also a big money maker for private investigators. That's because they're busy checking out accusations of cheating spouses.

NBC 10 News' Beth McDonough talked to one of these private eyes and uncovered the No. 1 way to tell if your sweetie is being unfaithful.

McDonough talked to one woman who admitted to cheating.

"A real player never gets caught," she says.

She told McDonough she believes it's easy to get away with.

But there was one couple who probably thought the same thing. But they were caught in the act -- busted by a private investigator's hidden camera.

Tony De Lorenzo has been chasing cheating spouses for 27 years. "There's no one out there that I cannot catch."

He says the week of Valentine's Day is his busiest time of the year.

"If you have a lover, you have to see the lover this week," De Lorenzo said.

He also says that Thursday night is prime time for fooling around.

"Before the weekend, you wanna see your lover. Saturday and Sunday, you're home with your spouse," De Lorenzo explained.

Don't be fooled just because your spouse buys you a nice gift like jewelery for Valentine's Day.

"Sometimes people ask for two of the same item, the exact same item. I guess so they don't have to remember what they gave who," said Steven Singer, a jeweler.

De Lorenzo says suspicious spouses often hire private investigators to trail cheaters. Many times the trail ends in a hotel hideaway and the unfaithful never knows they are being watched on a secret spy camera.

Undercover cameras can be hidden in everyday items to catch an abusive baby sitter, or an unfaithful spouse.

But DeLorenzo says you don't always need a hidden camera to get the truth.

"The number one way to catch someone, if you wanna do it yourself, is check your spouse's cell phone bill," DeLorenzo said.

Here are some of the other clues that your spouse may be unfaithful:

Loss of sexual interest

Working a lot of overtime

Sudden interest in exercise

Dressing more fashionably

Withdrawing more money than normal from the ATM

One private eye says that 80 percent of cheating is work-related and 75 percent of the spouses cheated on know who the other woman or man is. He also said that 50 percent of women who catch their husbands take them back. However, most husbands won't give their wives a second chance.

One man McDonough talked to admits he has strayed in the past and he has learned his lesson.

"Trust is very important. As you become older and wiser, these things are a lot more precious as far as relationships are concerned," he told McDonough.

Private investigators say that wives want to know every detail about the other woman, yet husbands want out of the marriage when they confirm there is an affair going on.

Statistically, according to private investigators, cheating goes both ways -- 50 percent of men and 50 percent of women commit adultery.

Related Resources:
All State Investigations