Emmerdale’s Eric Pollard gains the upper hand next week, when he finds indisputable evidence of Kerry Wyatt and Jai Sharma’s affair.

After marrying Kerry for the tax benefits, Eric has been in the dark while his new missus gets her kicks at work with the boss. So what will Pollard do with this tantalising information?

“Knowing this secret is the perfect bargaining tool for Eric,” our Emmerdale insider explains. “He could use this to blackmail them – but he’s certainly no fan of Jai, so he won’t be thrilled his wife is cheating with him, of all people.”

Pollard first becomes aware of the rumours when gossip begins to spread around the village. Jai and Kerry sneak around, enjoying their fling, under the illusion that everyone is oblivious to their chemistry. But they’re doing a terrible job of hiding…

Jai and Kerry are convinced that Archie is none the wiser about the secret arrangement happening right under his nose – but soon he’s giving Pollard the heads-up on their clandestine affair.

“Eric can’t believe Kerry would stoop so low,” our source continues. “He might not have married her for love, but he definitely cares about her.

“Eric saw first-hand what Jai did to his birth father, Amit, and he’s worried Kerry will get hurt.”

Archie’s gossip plants a seed of doubt in Eric’s mind, as he considers the possibility that his wife of convenience is seeing another man. Desperate to uncover the truth, Pollard makes it his mission to suss out whether there are any feelings between Kerry and Jai…

With his interest piqued, Eric does some super sleuthing and stumbles upon concrete evidence that they’re having an affair. Will Pollard keep the secret to himself? Or will he spoil their fun and reveal all to depot boss Caleb Miligan?

“Both Jai and Kerry are putting their jobs on the line,” our spy points out. “If their workplace affair becomes public knowledge, they could get into serious trouble. Not only that, Eric and Kerry could get done for fraud. How far will the smitten pair go to keep their relationship under wraps?”