Chapter 1 - A New Life For Julie
Late August, 1976
Julie drove west on State 101 in her red Volkswagen Beetle convertible. The instructions he had given her were pretty simple: "Go west on 101, take the Las Virgenes exit. Keep going, it becomes Malibu Canyon Road. Eventually you get to Pacific Coast Highway. The university will be right there at the corner. Turn right and head north on Pacific Coast Highway, drive about 20 more minutes out past Malibu, make a left on Oleander, drive until you get to the beach. It's the only driveway on the beach side."
"You can't miss it--it's the only house at the end of the road," he told her.
She found the house easily enough. It was in one of the few areas along the beach which had not been completely developed with expensive beachfront property. She pulled into the driveway and turned the car off. She was nervous. The ad in the newspaper was for free lodging "for the right person", in exchange for housekeeping.
The house was fairly large--a modern beach house with about 2000 square feet she guessed, but nowhere near as large as many of the houses in the area. She knocked on the door. She could hear a radio playing loud inside. It was "I Only Want to Be With You" by the Bay City Rollers. No one answered. She knocked again, much harder, and waited. She knocked one more time, and just as she was about to turn away, the door opened.
A middle-aged man, perhaps in his mid-thirties, stood in the doorway. He had penetrating grey eyes. His dark hair was parted in the middle and combed back. He was clean-shaven and wore tight white slacks, and a loose-fitting colorful, short-sleeved shirt, with the top three buttons open, revealing a tanned chest. The thing that struck her most about him though was the feeling of absolute masculine self-confidence which he seemed to have.
"Hi," she stammered. "I'm here about the ad?"
"Oh, sure. My name is Bruce. Bruce Oliver."
"I'm Juliet Lewis," she replied as she shook his hand.
He invited her in, and she followed him into the house. The house was a typical California beach house. There was a large cylindrical entryway with a stairway that followed the curved wall upwards. Windows placed high on the curved wall flooded the interior with light. She followed him into the kitchen and he motioned her to take a seat at a small two-person table in a curved nook with a magnificent view of the beach.
"Okay Juliet, can I get you anything? A beer?" he asked.
"Oh no. I'm only 18, and you can just call me Julie," she replied.
"That's old enough in my book, Julie, he said. "You sure you don't want a beer or something else?"
"No, that's okay."
"Okay then! He said, sitting down. "Let's get down to business. Here's what I'm looking for. I need someone's help keeping the place clean. Just helping pick things up--especially after a party. Helping to cook a little, clean the bathrooms and so on. You would also do the shopping. I guess I just need a woman's touch around here. In exchange, you get free room and board. You don't have to pay rent, or electricity, phone or food. You pretty much have the run of the place. The only thing you have to pay for is your car and transportation, and any personal items."
He watched her as he talked. She was easily the prettiest young lady he had interviewed yet, in spite of her conservative attire, glasses, and hair tightly tied back.
"That sounds like a great deal," she gushed.
"There is something you need to be aware of though," he added.
She looked apprehensive, waiting for him to speak.
Bruce was silent a minute. He really wanted her to stay, but he was afraid of scaring her away. There was no way around it though--better to tell her the truth now, rather than have her move in and run off within the first week.
"I live, he paused groping for the right words, "a modern lifestyle. Well frankly, I have a very active and open love life. I have a lot of women over, and we don't always just have sex in the bedroom."
"Oh," she said, her face turning red.
"And, I'm a freelance photographer and I specialize in pictorials for major men's magazines among other things, so I have a lot of models over. I have a photography studio right here in the house. I also have a lot of parties, and there's always a lot of sex."
Bruce paused and studied her red face--afraid she might bolt at any moment.
"Would it bother you to live like that?"
She thought for a minute, taking a deep breath. She really needed a place to stay. As of tonight, she had no where to stay, and only $10 left in her purse, and not much gas left in her car. This situation was perfect for her: close to the university, room and board paid for by labor only, and a beautiful house by the beach to live in. In spite of her limited experience, she knew she would not find another opportunity like this one.
Juliet had very little sexual experience, and Bruce's description of his love life intimidated her, but she knew she could not afford pass up this opportunity. She had counted on finding someplace affordable quickly, but had been ignorant of the lack of affordable housing in Southern California. Although she had been in the area for three days, everything she had found had been far more expensive than she had expected, and she had already blown through all her money.
"No, I guess not, as long as I'm not forced to do anything," she answered.
"Oh, I promise you that won't happen! In this house, sex takes place only between consenting adults, and nobody does anything they don't want to do."
"Okay then," she said, feeling a flush of relief course through her body.
"You would be free to join any time though..."