Sitting on the couch, I was mindlessly scrolling through my phone, enjoying the quiet of the afternoon. The sun was filtering through the curtains, casting warm patterns of light onto the floor, and everything felt normal; safe.

That is, until Mark asked me to sit down because he wanted to talk.

It wasn’t unusual for us to talk, our relationship had always been open and communicative, but there was something in his voice, a strange nervousness that made my stomach tighten with worry. He sat down next to me, but the space between us felt wider than usual, like there was a wall I couldn’t see.

"Em, I’ve been thinking," he started, his voice low, almost hesitant.

"Okay..." I tried to smile, but my fingers played nervously with the edge of my sweater. Mark was always straightforward, so this uncharacteristic nervousness threw me off. "What’s up? You’re kind of scaring me."

He ran his hand through his hair, not looking at me. "I’ve been thinking about us, about our sex life."

I blinked, unsure of where this was going. Our sex life? Sure, after three years of marriage, it wasn’t exactly the whirlwind it had been when we were dating, but I never thought there was anything wrong. "What about it?"

He took a deep breath, finally meeting my eyes. "There’s something I’ve wanted to share with you for a while now. It’s a fantasy of mine. And I didn’t know how to bring it up because it’s kind of... unconventional."

My heart started to race, though I wasn’t sure why. Mark had never been one to hide anything from me, so hearing that he had been holding back felt strange. "Unconventional how?" I asked, my voice barely above a whisper.

He exhaled slowly. "I’ve always had this fantasy of you being with someone else."

I froze. The words didn’t register at first. My mind tried to make sense of what he had said, as if I hadn’t heard him right. "You... you want me to cheat on you?" My voice was shaky, disbelief heavy in every word.

"No, no, not cheat," he said quickly, reaching for my hand. "I mean... with my permission. I want you to be with someone else but I want to be part of it. I want to watch, or hear about it after. It’s something I’ve been thinking about for a while."

The air felt thick, and I could feel my pulse hammering in my ears. I pulled my hand away, needing distance. "Mark, that’s... I don’t understand. Why would you want that? I mean we’re happy, right?"

He nodded, his eyes pleading for me to understand. "Yes, we’re happy. I love you. But it’s something different. It’s not because I’m not satisfied with you, it’s because I want to explore this together. I want to see you experience pleasure in a way we haven’t before. It’s a turn-on for me, the idea of you with someone else."

I stared at him, my mind racing. How could this be a turn-on for him? We’d always been so traditional. I had never even thought about being with someone else. I was his wife. The thought of being with another man had never crossed my mind, let alone doing it with his permission. It felt wrong. It felt like a betrayal of everything we’d built together.

"I don’t... I don’t know if I can do that, Mark," I whispered. "I’ve only ever been with you. I’ve never even thought about being with another man."

He looked down, his face etched with something like disappointment but also understanding. "I get that. I’m not asking you to jump into anything right away. I just wanted to be honest about my fantasy. I thought maybe you’d be open to it. But if it makes you uncomfortable, we don’t have to do anything."

There was a pause as I tried to process what he was saying. My mind was swimming with conflicting thoughts. Part of me was hurt—deeply hurt—that he even had this fantasy. Was I not enough for him? Was he secretly unhappy with me? But then another part of me, a quieter voice, whispered questions I wasn’t ready to answer. Was it possible that this was more about him than about me? Was this about pushing boundaries, exploring something new together?

"How long have you been thinking about this?" I asked, my voice small, almost afraid of the answer.

"Since before we got married," he admitted. "I never brought it up because I didn’t want to make you uncomfortable. But the fantasy’s always been there."

I swallowed hard, my throat suddenly dry. "And you think this would help us?"

"I think it would be something exciting. Something different. I love you, Emily. I’m not asking for you to do this because I’m bored or because I don’t love what we have. I just want to see you in a different light. It’s hard to explain."

I sat there for a long time, my hands twisting in my lap. I didn’t know what to say. I didn’t know how to respond. I loved Mark. He was the only man I’d ever been with. The idea of being with someone else felt wrong, but at the same time he was giving me permission. He was telling me this was something that would turn him on, something he wanted for us.

But could I really do it? Could I go through with something like that?

"I need time," I finally said, my voice thick with emotion. "I need time to think about this."

Mark nodded, his expression softening. "Of course. Take all the time you need. I just wanted to be honest with you."

When he left the room, I stayed on the couch, my mind buzzing. The man I loved, the man I trusted more than anyone, had just asked me to sleep with someone else. Not only that, he wanted me to want it, to enjoy it.

How could I possibly wrap my mind around that?

I’d never been adventurous like that. I’d grown up in a traditional household, where marriage was sacred, and fidelity was non-negotiable. I had been with Mark since I was 21. He was my first, my only, and now he was asking me to consider being with another man.

I pulled the blanket tighter around myself, trying to fight the chill creeping up my spine. This wasn’t something I could just decide overnight. But as much as I wanted to dismiss the idea entirely, there was a tiny part of me—a curious part—that wondered what it might be like. Would it really be so terrible?

Mark loved me. He was asking for this, not because he wanted to lose me, but because he trusted me. And in some strange way, that trust was flattering. But was I ready to push the boundaries of our relationship? Was I ready to explore something so far outside my comfort zone?

I didn’t know. But the seed had been planted, and I couldn’t shake the feeling that this was the beginning of something I could no longer ignore.