Murder By the Book: Candy and Betty

Sexual Yearning

Map with Lucas, Texas locator

A seven-year itch alighted on Candy Montgomery's marriage in 1978, and the north Texas housewife couldn't help but scratch it. She craved a love affair — a bodice-ripping, chest-heaving romance with a man who would stimulate her in ways that her computer engineer husband, Pat, had never been able.

Candace Montgomery

Candace Wheeler, an Army brat, and Pat Montgomery, a nerdy rising star at Texas Instruments, had met in El Paso on a date arranged by Pat's mother. Over their years together, they had forged a comfortable partnership with two children, but Candy yearned for more. "I want fireworks," she told a friend. But with whom?

Candy was attractive enough — petite, blonde and not yet 30. But she didn't seem the swinger type, with her church lady's wardrobe and bookish eyeglasses.

One evening during a church volleyball game, Candy nearly collided with a teammate named Allan Gore, a computer software engineer. She got close enough to get a good whiff of him, and she perceived what she thought was a sexy odor. It may have been muskiness, not manliness; like Candy, Gore was a plain man — small of stature, neither fit nor fat, and balding. No one would have mistaken him for Fabio.

Yet a few weeks later, Candy pulled Gore aside after church choir practice and said, "Would you be interested in having an affair with me?" If she was hoping for a spontaneous love clinch and a Harlequin Romance moment, she didn't get it. Instead, Gore replied as though someone had made an offer to buy a used toaster or television set from him. "Well, thank you for your interest," he said. "Let me think about it and get back to you."

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1. Sexual Yearning
2. Yawning Affair
3. Marriage Encounter
4. Seeking Betty
5. Ax Murder
6. Affair Revealed
7. Local Lawyer
8. Murder Trial
9. "I Don't Want Him"
10. Psychiatrist's Spin
11. Wrapping Up
12. "It Hurts"
13. Life After Betty
14. Resources