BBM
IMO -
a strong ongoing sugar baby relationship might be relaxing. A getaway from family obligations to chill with a sympathetic person. After reviewing information regarding sugar-baby culture and comparing it to historical antecedents,
I found a connection to murder in this context.
A sugar-baby appears to be what used to called a courtesan, meaning the relationship may be sexual or not, but it is paid for. While courtesans for kings and powerful men are well-known,
less well-known are the courtesans in America in the 1800s catering to well-off but not super rich men.
Many were young men newly sent to New York City to apprentice for a position of responsibility. The
young men had money, but no socially acceptable outlets for a sexual/love relationship. The women they would eventually marry could not engage in premarital sex. So they
engaged in paid romances with courtesans. The courtesans sent letters, declared undying love, etc. They had more one client usually - but, each was treated as a love affair. Think of the situation as a timeshare romance.
In New York, there was famous murder case of a courtesan in the 1830s -
Helen Jewett. Based on letters left behind, one problematic detail with the paid romance was that
the young man might mistake the relationship for love, despite the paying the woman and knowing about other men.
For this reason,
let's keep an open mind about the person that picked her up, who perhaps felt completely betrayed when it dawned on him that his relationship was just arrangement. Courtesans like Helen Jewett were playing a dangerous game.
Read more:
https://www.amazon.com/Murder-Helen-Jewett-Patricia-Cline/dp/0679740759
