Fourth Lake, Chapter 4

Chapter 3 was posted at the end of March.

Judy and Phil had just passed the toll booth at the Tappan Zee Bridge and were crossing over to the west side of the Hudson River when Judy’s mood changed.  Phil noticed, but said nothing.  They had been married for twelve years.  On the surface, things appeared good.  Phil was doing great at his CPA firm, both professionally and financially.  Judy had what she wanted, a successful husband, two adorable children, and a big, beautiful house in Little Neck.  She had quit working when her first child was born.  She was going to be a stay-at-home mom.  Their two kids were a handful, but they were healthy and well-adjusted.  Phil was a workaholic, putting in ridiculous hours away from home, but the whole family had gotten used to it.  Or had they?

It had always seemed to Judy that Phil had a lower sex drive than she did.  However, maybe it was just that working so many hours sapped his energy for the bed room.  Judy was a beautiful woman both dressed and undressed.  She could lure most any man.

Phil was not the only man that Judy had ever slept with.  On her romp through Europe, she had met a French student.  They spent a month together.  He showed her the French countryside from Paris to the Riviera.  He taught her some French and a part of life she had never experienced.  She fell in love with him, but realized it was just a fling.  He had no desire to move to the United States and Judy wasn’t going to spend the rest of her life in France.  But it was marvelous while it lasted. 

Compared to her French lover, Phil had been a bit of a disappointment.  When they were first married, she tempted him often in bed at night, with sexy negligees and perfume, but too often he declined her invitations.  They had sex about every week or so.  When they did make love, it was good for Judy, but sometimes in the afterglow of the evening, she remembered the lover she had left behind in France.

Judy talked Phil into going on a two-week vacation in the Adirondack Mountains.  They had been through the area around Fouth Lake and Judy fell in love with it.  She thought it was perfect for what she wanted: a beautiful, remote place to bring out the romance in her husband.  Normally, the Black family went on one week vacations together, parents and children alike, usually in the same hotel room, which was not very romantic.  Even though he was entitled to four weeks paid vacation, Phil claimed that one week was all he could take because of his busy schedule.  For the first time, Judy sent both her girls to gymnastic camp.  The coast was clear for Judy and Phil to spend some quality time alone.

In January of 1973, right after Nixon’s second inaugural, Judy started noticing a change in Phil’s sexual apetite.  He seemed even less interested in making love with Judy than before.  He never initiated sex with her and would only succumb to her advances about twice a month.  Judy was suspicious and looked for answers to this change in behavior. 

About two months before, almost on election day, Phil hired a new secretary as his previous one retired.  Her name was Beverly Swanson and she was young and gorgeous.  Judy met her for the first time at the firm’s annual Christmas party the following month.  Judy overheard Malcolm tell Beverly that she was the most beautiful woman at the party, repeating the same phrase he had used with Judy many years before.  She seemed like a Jayne Mansfield wannabe, the way she dressed and acted that night.  And she seemed to be continually flirting with Phil.  At the end of the night, Judy exploded.

“Phil, you must get rid of that ridiculous girl,” shouted Judy, the very second they were finally alone in their car.

“What ridiculous girl are you talking about?”

“You know perfectly well who I’m talking about.”

“You’re being childish and jealous for no good reason.”

“Oh, really!  Well, she was falling all over you tonight, making a spectacle of herself and humiliating me.  I should have slapped her face good.”

“She was clearly high on booze, but she’s nothing like that at the office.  There, Beverly’s very professional.  I have no grounds to dismiss her.  And besides, there’s nothing going on between us.  I’m sure she has plenty of boyfriends.  She has no interest in me.”

“And you have no interest in Beverly?”

“Are you kidding me?  I’m almost old enough to be her father.”

“Well, I see Bob Grant has a new, young wife, so anything’s possible.”

“For your information, his name is Bill Grant and I have no romantic interest in Beverly.  You should come to the office and see the way she dresses and acts there.”

“The way she dresses and acts at the office has nothing to do with it.  Her drinking lowered her inhibitions and showed her true intentions toward you.  You better not go around fucking with that girl or I’ll cut your balls off.  Do you hear me, Phil?  The two of you aren’t going to treat me that way and get away with it.”

“I’d say you had too much to drink tonight, too.”

At home, in their bed room, Judy tried to seduce Phil.  He said she was too drunk, but she didn’t believe him. 

Throughout 1973, Judy paid attention and noticed Phil’s declining sexual interest in her.  At the annual Christmas party, she had mixed feelings about seeing Beverly again.  On the one hand, she hoped that Beverly would show up with a fiancé.  On the other hand, she feared another embarrassing scene with either Beverly or her husband.  While people were talking about the possibility of the Miami Dolphins repeating as Super Bowl champions, Judy noticied that Beverly, after a polite hello at the receiving line, stayed clear of both her and Phil for the rest of the evening.  Judy knew because she kept one eye on the blonde the whole night.

As things progressed with Phil in a similar manner during 1974, Judy became more and more suspicious.  She was determined to do something about this problem she was having difficulty coping with.  She confronted Phil with her complaints about his lack of interest in her, but he said he was just too tired from working so much and there was nothing he could do about it.  It was the life of a CPA and he needed to continue for the sake of the family’s financial security.  Judy didn’t fully believe him.  Then she came up with the idea of the two-week vacation at Fourth Lake as the final solution.  With no work and no children for two weeks, it would test how Phil really felt about her as a woman.  She wasn’t going to spend the rest of her life like this.  If Phil didn’t want her, other men did.

To be continued next month...