I woke up early in the morning excited for the day. Becca's Father told me to meet him at 7:00 am sharp at the front of the manor, so we could take a carriage to the workshop and get there by 8 am, when work started for the workers.
When I woke up, Becca had her arms wrapped around my right arm and her head leaning against my shoulder. She didn't need to head to the training ground until 9 am, so she could sleep in a little longer than me. I gently wiggled out of her embrace, careful not to wake her up. Leaning over the bed, I gave her forehead a soft kiss and whispered to her sleeping figure, "I'm heading off with your Father now, Becca. Have fun showing off to your family and make sure to stay safe."
Suddenly, Becca rushed forward and kissed my cheek with only half opened eyes. "Good luck with my Father, Nick. I know you can do it."
I was surprised by her sudden action, but it filled my heart with warmth. "I'm sorry I woke you up…you can still sleep for a couple more hours."
Becca smiled lightly while obviously only being half awake. "No, I specifically wanted to wake up so I could send you off."
Becca caring about such a small gesture meant a lot to me. I rubbed her arm lovingly, "I really appreciate it. I'll make sure to do a good job and tell you all about it when I get back. I also want to hear about how your training with your Brother went. Now get some rest."
Becca was laying in bed with her eyes already closed when she replied, "sounds good."
I quickly got ready and headed outside the manor. I made it right on time and Becca's Father was already there waiting for me with the carriage. He looked a little anxious. "Good morning, Nick. Ready to go?"
"Yes Father-in-law, I'm excited to show you and your researchers what I have. I think it will make us both a lot of money and also greatly improve the quality of life for the people of the Duchy."
We both entered the carriage and sat down before he replied, "let's not worry about the deals until we get to the workshop. We have an hour before we get there and I have some pressing concerns to discuss with you."
His words seemed ominous, "pressing concerns?"
He cleared his breath nervously, "Are you really adding a law that a wife can have concubines if their husband has concubines? Why?"
I frowned at his sudden questions. "Just like Becca told you last time, why is it fair that you can play around with women during your trips, but your wife has to stay at home and accept it, while being forced to stay loyal herself. The same way you feel at the possibility of your wife getting a concubine is the exact same way she felt when you first informed her that you were going to have concubines yourself."
Becca's Father put his head in his hands and said in exasperation, "I have been thinking about it a lot since you both first brought it up. Did I really hurt my wife so bad? I have never felt any love for any of my concubines. I just use them to satisfy my desires when I'm busy on the road. When I'm home, I never call my concubines."
"Well, I can't speak specially for your wife, so I'll speak for not just the average wife, but really most spouses that are married, man or woman. I think the one thing people want in a marriage is dedication and loyalty. Someone who will be by their side and support them through the good times and the bad times.
Marriage means you two are a team now, a family. The same way you would always look after your parents and siblings and never abandon them, you should look after your marriage partner. The reason it would hurt if your husband got concubines for business trips while the wife has to wait at home alone patiently is because you both are not sharing the burden equally.
If you are dedicated to your wife, you should be able to suffer a little bit and not have any sexual relations for a few months during your trip just like your wife also can't have any sexual relations. If you struggled being apart from your wife for months and missed holding her in your arms everyday, then the day you returned, can you imagine how loving and passionate the first night with her after so long would be? You both would be releasing the months of pent up love you have for each other like it's the first time you were together.
Instead, your wife has to hold in all her pent up feelings alone while you indulge in various women. Then, she thinks about if having sex for you is just about getting rid of your desires when she always thought of it as an action of making love with the person you hold dearest. Eventually she will question if you really love her, or if you just see her like a convenient outlet to get rid of your desires.
When you return from a long trip and sleep together, instead of it being a great night for the both of you, she instead can't stop thinking about the fact that your penis was just recently in other women and she wonders if you are comparing her body that has had children already with the bodies of your young concubines.
The loyalty and dedication that she hoped for from her husband now seems like a total farce. No matter how nice you treat her when you are home, the moment you are away, you are ready to replace her with another woman. It would be demoralizing to anyone, I hope you can understand that, Father-in-law."
After my long speech, Becca's Father was crying profusely…