Condonation

"How can I endure the humiliation of remaining married to a wife who continues to cheat on me? Everyone will view me with contempt if they find out that I am not only a cuckold but that I have tolerated my cuckolding."

"I wouldn't be so certain about your fate if word gets out," Hank argued. "The mere fact that the legislatures and the courts went to the trouble to formulate the legal theory of condonation is proof that not only was infidelity rather common back in the day, it was not uncommon for husbands as well as wives to forgive or even condone adultery as you have done. I have read some studies that suggest that people have become less tolerant of adultery within marriage, but only because the couples who are less committed and more likely to be unfaithful tend to just live together rather than get married. Interestingly; people who are married are more likely to remain in a relationship with an unfaithful partner than people who are just cohabitating."

"I don't want to condone Doreen's cheating. I want her to become the faithful wife that she used to be," David protested.

"If you really can not endure the humiliation of Doreen's adulteries, then you need to talk to her about it. You two could get counseling that might enable her to resume your once mundane, monogamous marriage. However; I seriously doubt that your wife can revert to a life of fidelity anytime soon. Now that she has tasted forbidden fruit, it will be difficult for her to stop. If you impose an ultimatum on Doreen after condoning her adulteries for so long, she will probably divorce you and for good reason. A more pragmatic strategy would be to talk to her about her infidelities, offer her unconditional forgiveness for the adulteries that you have tacitly condoned, then discuss how the two of you will either avoid or cope with her future adulteries."

"I can't believe that you are serious," David protested. "You have no idea how humiliating this is for me."

"I've too have endured the humiliation of having an unfaithful wife," Hank confessed. "I only reluctantly forgave my first wife after the first time that I discovered that she had become an adulteress. When I discovered a few years later that she was once again spreading her legs for another man, I self righteously ditched the bitch. I was just a hotshot attorney rather than a judge back then, so my fantasies of burning the bitch did not become reality. Her divorce attorney cleaned my clock. It took me years and a big win on a lawsuit to recover financially. Another price of my pride is that the children that we had together haven't spoken to me in years."

Judge Erwin leaned back on the bench as he continued, allowing his towel to fall open as if to display his unimpressive genitals. "I did have my revenge by marrying a much younger, trophy wife. She is a natural blonde with bigger tits, almost as impressive as Doreen's. Guess what? She cheated on me too. I was wiser the second time around. I did a lot of soul searching about what was really important to me before I talked things out with her. I reluctantly acknowledged that having a wife who was a good mother and loved me even though she had given in to temptation was more important than her fidelity and my husbandly pride. We now have an overt understanding. She understands that I wouldn't remain married to a habitually promiscuous slut. However; I also understand that she has needs that a man my age cannot fully satisfy. We both understand that I will accept occasional flings and even more prolonged affairs as long as she is discrete and not disrespectful about it. We have agreed that she has to be careful to avoid serious emotional involvements that might jeopardize our marriage. In return for my acquiescence to her occasional infidelities, my wife is a devoted mother and attentive to my sexual needs."

"Why do you accept this arrangement? You're a Judge for God's sake. A man of your prominence deserves to have a loyal wife," David protested.

Judge Erwin pointed between his legs as he said, "look at me. I'm just like you. I may not be a pencil prick, but no one would accuse either of us of being hung. My wife might have remained satisfied with what I have to offer her if we were still living in the good old days when women were expected to remain virgins for their future husbands. However; neither of my wives had been virgins when I started courting them. They rationalized that my intellect, financial success and prominent status could compensate for my anatomical shortcoming. I've become realistic enough to understand that size does matter to a woman and that a wise husband needs to accept that reality."

"I'll have to think about," David mumbled as he got up to head for the lockers.

When David arrived home, Doreen was in the shower. He wondered why until he remembered that they had a banquet that they needed to attend. David was grateful for the excuse to delay confessing to his wife that he had been quietly acquiescing to her infidelities. He stripped out of his polo shirt and slacks then got busy laying out his tuxedo.

Doreen emerged from the shower to inspect her husband. She even smelled him. "You've obviously been drinking again," she admonished. "You will have to be careful to not drink much at the banquet. Fortunately; you obviously showered at the club so we will not be late. I booked us a room at the hotel so we don't have to worry about driving home."

As David began to get dressed, he noticed that Doreen was putting on her garter belt and stockings rather than pantyhose. She answered his unasked question, "I thought that I should try to look sexy for you tonight."

"Thank you," David said earnestly.

David remained silent as he watched his wife hook the garter belt to the stockings, but he finally protested when she started to put on her lacy, black, half cup bra. "You know that your black, shelf style bra matches your garter belt better?"

"I know," Doreen agreed. "However; this is a formal occasion. A lot of people we know and even do business with will be there. I'm wearing my little, black dress tonight. It is okay for me to go commando because no one needs to know, but wearing my shelf bra is indiscret. Do you want everyone to see the impressions of your wife's nipples through the clingy fabric? They will think that I am a slut."

David considered the question. He was amazed to hear himself answering, "most people will think you look sexy. I don't mind if a few think that you look slutty."

Doreen blushed then almost got angry before she took off her half cup bra. David said nothing as she put on her shelf bra then adjusted it to ensure that her breasts would be supported while her nipples remained uncovered. She then put on her little, black dress. David eagerly zipped her up.

The banquet would have been boring if not for the fact that so many men were so obviously admiring Doreen's exposed cleavage and the impressions in the fabric from her protruding nipples. As they ate and engaged in inconsequential conversations, David realized how much it pleased him that other men lusted after his wife. He finally understood that the price of having a wife who was desirable to other men was that his wife would have ample opportunities to stray. He belatedly realized that this was a price that he was actually willing to pay.

These thoughts remained on David's mind when the dancing began. As usual, he clumsily danced a few songs with his wife before returning to their table to sit out the music. As usual, there was no shortage of men who were eager to dance with Doreen. As usual, Doreen invoked his implicit indulgence by accepting invitations from the more attractive and virile looking men. The only surprise was that she began to dance exclusively with a handsome, young Black man who was rather persistent and attentive. As his wife allowed him to usher her on to the dance floor, David noticed the very impressive bulge in his trousers.

As the evening wore on, the music became less formal and the dancing became more intimate. David was not surprised to see a pair of ebony hands drifting down Doreen's back to caress her butt. He was hardly the first guy who had taken such liberties with his wife. David was also not surprised to see those same, ebony hands drift up along Doreen's flanks to covertly caress her breasts. The only surprise was her failure to fend off those roaming hands. She merely glanced at David to confirm that her husband wasn't getting angry. Interpreting David's silence as permission, Doreen offered no protest as the young, Black man began to blatantly fondle her breasts.

When Doreen's dance partner finally ushered her back to their table David teased her, "you two should get a room."

Doreen teasingly replied, "his room or ours?"

Realizing that the moment of truth had arrived David said, "better go to his room rather than ours. That way I will not need to endure the humiliation of having to explain why I am hanging out here alone. You just have to promise to return to me before dawn."

Confident that her husband's acquiescence was genuine, Doreen allowed her new friend to usher her off to the elevators. As he watched her shapely butt and wide hips sway away, David realized that they would be having some difficult conversations in the coming days and weeks. However; he was confident that their marriage would not just survive but thrive as a result.