10 comments/ 47847 views/ 17 favorites Oregon Country Fair By: mgablea Like most husbands in these stories I am basically a bystander, an observer if you will; the main provocation for my wife's sudden departure from the straight and narrow. My name is Steve, 28, a CPA and married to the love of my life, Lorrie, 26. Lorrie is a skinny 100 lbs, natural blonde hair on her head and a matching blonde muff between her legs. Her breasts are not what you would call large by any means but they are what I call right sized with nice light pink nipples and areolas to match. I love to squeeze and massage her breasts and to pinch and suck her nipples. I especially love the fact that when are home she is always topless so if I am not playing with her breasts, I get to look and drool over them. She thinks it's funny that I fawn over her breasts so much. "They're for feeding babies," she is always telling me. She just does not understand why men think breasts, especially bare breasts, are so fantastic. Her being topless around the house, however, was as far as it went. Although it was not for a lack of trying by me, I had tried unsuccessfully to get Lorrie to "dress sexier" and "show a little" when we go out but she always flatly refuses. We have only been married a couple of years and we were each others' "firsts" so sex is frequent as we try and make up for lost time. Other than that, we are an extremely conservative couple and Lorrie always dresses extremely modestly and I do mean modestly. Outside of the house, she absolutely never shows a hint of cleavage and most of the time her clothes are so baggy you hardly know she has a shape at all. The week after the fourth of July, my firm sent me to Eugene, Oregon for some continuing education. Since neither of us has been to the Northwest before so Lorrie came along and we extended our stay for a mini vacation, which was great because I did not have to suffer through a week of a lack of nookie. The weekend came and we were driving around when we saw signs advertising the Oregon Country Fair. It sounded like fun so Lorrie and I decided to check it out. After parking the car, the first thing we noticed is that this fair was different than the ones back home. Instead of being in a large treeless lot, this fair was basically in a wood land. You had to make your way along various pathways and into clearings. The next thing we noticed was the eclectic mix of people. In addition to the "normal" people there seemed to be an unusual assortment of hippie types. The other thing is atmosphere was very relaxed and laid back none of the hustle and bustle and "move it along" at the other fairs we have been to. Anyway, Lorrie and I were making our way a long, enjoying the entertainment and looking at the craft displays when it happened. We, actually I, saw a young woman wearing a skirt and nothing else. She was TOPLESS! I could not believe it, here was a young woman walking around in PUBLIC with her pale firm breasts and cherry red nipples bare! Like it was nothing unusual! For the whole world to see! I stared, I admit it, I stared. Here was a cute young woman walking around in the crowd with her jiggling breasts completely bared like it was nothing. She even smiled and posed for the many people who stopped her and asked to take a picture of her. She obliged every request as if it was no big deal. Now when I say "I saw," I should say Lorrie saw too, but mostly what she saw was my reaction, which admittedly was not cool but what did Lorrie expect? She knows how I feel about breasts and here was only the second flesh and blood woman whose naked breasts I had ever seen. Lorrie did not say anything but I could tell even as I continued to gawk at the young woman's breasts that Lorrie was not pleased. I just could not help myself; her breasts just looked so nice and firm and.... You get the picture, what red blooded male could resist. We moved on. Strike one. Minutes later, we were in another area looking at some crafts when my arm brushed against someone else's skin. Immediately, I knew this was not ordinary skin; from the texture and the feel in felt like... The first thing I did was look down at what had touched me and I immediately recognized what I had brushed against was a woman's bare nipple except this one was covered in blue paint. I widened my gaze to see a new woman, topless, except her breasts and chest had been painted over in a really nice flower design that was very artistic. I did manage to briefly look up into the woman's eyes and I apologize for brushing against her. She introduced herself as "Jane" and told me it was OK that it was probably more her fault. At the same time she was talking to me, she was pressing her practically naked breast into my arm, causing me a world of embarrassment. She noticed my obvious embarrassment which made her laugh and then she asked me if I wanted to take her picture. How could I refuse and offer like that? Would you? She stepped back to give me a good view of her "artwork" and I started taking frame after digital frame of her "artwork." This was great! Here I was taking pictures of a topless woman and she did not care! She even insisted that I do it. True her nipples and breasts were hidden under a thick layer of paint but you could clear tell that other than that she was topless. Lorrie was watching the whole scene with increasing agitation from my overt interest in this semi nude "other woman." I knew I was in for it later and it might actually take Lorrie a week or more to calm down but what man could resist this kind of an opportunity. Whatever hell I was in for later was damn well worth it. Strike two. My new friend, Jane, was joined by two other equally lovely and equally topless young women; each sporting artwork on their bare chests, two of them even left their pink nipples bare. Now I was rapidly snapping pictures of three topless women, individually and together. I could not believe my luck! This was like a dream come true. Strike three. Lorrie had had enough and it showed. I was in for it as Lorrie was about to lay into me but my new best friend Jane noticed and caught Lorrie and redirected her. For the next half hour, "the girls" talked as Lorrie's demeanor changed from one of complete rage to one of total girlish giddiness. I could not hear the complete conversation but I did notice Lorrie blushing ruby red many times and I heard Lorrie say, "I could never do that!" several times, followed by Jane reassuring her with words whispered into Lorrie's ear so that I could not hear. Jane and Lorrie ended up giggling like a couple of schools girls, making Jane's breasts jiggle wonderfully, and you could have sworn they were old friends. When we parted company, Jane gave Lorrie a huge hug and even a peck on the Lorrie's lips, which surprised Lorrie and me, and a knowing wink that made me wonder what the two had talked about. I was kind of taken aback by the sudden change in Lorrie's attitude. She had a sly grin on her face and was extraordinarily pleasant. I would have been more concerned but I was distracted and completely infatuated with other topless women we came across from time to time. Oddly, Lorrie no longer seemed to care. I got distracted by one woman who came by with piercings in her nipples. I had never imagined anyone doing such a thing and yet here she was. I just stood there gawking, oblivious to anything else going on around me. When I came back to my senses, Lorrie had disappeared. She was nowhere to be found. I looked around for her but could not find her. I figured she must have had had enough of me and had set out on her own and that we would catch up later and then all hell would break lose. Just as well because this left me free and clear to check out the rest of the scantily clad and semi-nude females. I wandered around for a little while without seeing another woman topless so I headed off to another area. Along the way, I saw a sign saying "Body Painting" and an arrow directing me. Guessing I would have better hunting that way, I headed up the path. Sure enough, as I was approaching the booth a new topless lady wearing a fresh coat of paint appeared for my viewing pleasure and without Lorrie around I felt free to ogle her as much as I liked. Like a moth to a flame I was drawn to her until... "Lorrie ___________" A strange voice coming from an unseen person called my wife's name, bringing me back to reality. I looked in the direction I had heard the voice and saw a crowd gathered around one booth in particular. It took me a few minutes to maneuver to where I could see what was going on. Immediately, I recognized the familiar face of my wife. She looked flush and anxious as she talked excitedly to the hippie looking girl in the booth. Lorrie pointed at something on the table and the girl smiled and bobbed her head up and down and said something to Lorrie. Whatever Lorrie and the girl had been talking about must have embarrassed Lorrie because Lorrie was so red it was scary. There was also a man standing close to Lorrie. Not only was he close to Lorrie but he had made himself very friendly to her. I could tell he was encouraging her and complimenting her because she kept looking up to him and smiling and thanking him. He even put his arm around Lorrie which seemed to startle her but she did not try to make him move it. The negotiations reached a critical point and Lorrie hesitated. That is when her new gentleman friend stepped in. He pulled his waleet from his pocket and handed the hippie girl several large bills which made her extremely happy. Lorrie at first tried to refuse but he and the hippie girl insisted and in the end Lorrie gave in. Lorrie walked behind the counter but not before asking the man with her something. I could tell he was more than happy to comply with my wife's request and he followed Lorrie behind the counter where Lorrie handed him her video camera and gave him instructions on how to use it. Obviously, she had asked him to video something but what? She was not actually...was she? At last, the hippie girl seemed to have everything ready and turned to Lorrie. Lorrie looked very determined but frightened which the hippie girl noticed and immediately started comforting and reassuring Lorrie. Whatever was said worked because Lorrie soon calmed down and smiled and laughed, albeit nervously, for the first time. Lorrie hesitated a second more and then to my complete and utter shock and dismay I watched as she grasped the bottom of her pullover top and pulled it up. It was like a grand unveiling as first her bare stomach, then her bra and finally all the up and over her head, leaving her chest covered by only her white cotton bra. I immediately got a hardon as I watched my wife publicly showing herself in just her bra for the first time ever. Lorrie dropped her top on a chair beside her and then before I could react and to my astonishment her hand went behind her back to where the clasp holding on her bra was. She looked directly into the camera lens of where the stranger stood videoing. The bra around her chest monetarily tighten before going slack and to my utter disbelief the white elastic garment slipped down and completely off my wife's arms, revealing my wife's firm breasts and light pink nipples to the crowd of perverts gathered around watching. She was topless! My shy, modest, prim and proper wife was naked from the waist up in front of a crowd of strangers! Strangers, who were also taking pictures of her as fast as they could. This really pissed me off because Lorrie has always flatly refused to let me take any kind of revealing photos of her and now here she was letting anyone and everyone photograph her topless. Guess that's what I get for being so infatuated with the women here at the fair. Lorrie's skin glowed deep red and her nipples were puffy and on point as she stood topless in front of the crowd of degenerates; the only people to have seen Lorrie's bare breasts besides me. It was obvious Lorrie was very nervous about being displayed like this but she was also unwavering. Lorrie's new male friend was avidly videoing and giving her encouragement as well. Lorrie dropped her bra on her top on the chair with her t-shirt. Lorrie just stood there as she and the hippie girl chit chatted until Lorrie's nervousness eased. Not until the hippie girl decided Lorrie was ready did the hippie girl set about her work as she began drawing the outline of flower pedals that radiated from Lorrie's bare nipples across her supple breasts. Once the outline was done it was only a matter of minutes before Lorrie's chest was decorated with flowers of blue and red and purple and accented with sparkles. To my surprise, Lorrie's nipples stayed unpainted. Lorrie was getting her revenge. The hippie girl showed Lorrie her work with a mirror which Lorrie approved of excitedly. Repeated camera flashes recorded my wife's artwork as souvenirs for her admirers gathered around. Lorrie picked up her purse and put her bra and top in it before going to her new male friend to get our video camera. Instead, he asked her something. At first she seemed to refuse but he persisted and she eventually smiled broadly and agreed. She pulled her bra from her bag and handed it to him which he pocketed. Apparently, he had requested it as his payment. I assumed they would part company and that Lorrie would come looking for me to rub it in my face, as it were but Lorrie's friend would not hear of it and to my shock and dismay they headed off together arm in arm. It was weird seeing my wife with another man even more so because she was topless! All thoughts of pursuing other topless women were lost as I concentrated on following my wife and her new male friend. I was both pissed and turned on at seeing my almost naked wife roaming around in public arm in arm with a complete stranger. I should have put a stop to the foolishness right then but instead I just followed along waiting to see what happened. That's not true, truthfully I was excited at seeing my semi-nude wife with another man. Lorrie was now completely comfortable with her semi nudity as she was stopped every few steps for strangers to admire her artwork and to take her picture. At one point they stopped and Lorrie's friend asked her for the camera, which she gave it to him. He then began videoing Lorrie again and he directed her to do something. She hesitated but in the end she smiled broadly and made a big show of tossing her top into a trash bin. She was now committed to staying topless for the day. Her friend applauded her bravery and even gave her a quick peck on the lips. My poor over erect cock painfully twitched inside my pants when I saw that. They came to a booth with food and a number of tables and chairs some of which were partially hidden away. Lorrie's new friend bought them some food and a drink and they eventually ended up sitting together at a table out of sight of most of the crowd. I found a place where I could watch them and hopefully not be seen. I wanted to know what else my wife would do. Lorrie's friend took the video camera and put it on the table in front of them and started videoing the two of them together. Lorrie was in full flirt mode as she entertained her new friend. She repeatedly touched his arm and hand, she touched her hair and she laughed and giggled like a charmed school girl. He pressed his advantage too; holding her hand, looking cow-eyed into her eyes and whisper into her ear, causing her to giggle. He toyed with the wedding ring on her finger, no doubt making some asshole comment about me leaving such a beautiful lady alone. He rubbed the bare skin of Lorrie's bare back. He was working his magic on Lorrie because I knew how that turned Lorrie on. Next, Lorrie stunned me as the stranger leaned in and kissed Lorrie full on the lips, not a peck this time but a full blown kiss. As if that was not bad enough he kissed her again and even a third time. That was it I had had enough I had to put a stop to this. I started to storm over to where they were making out but when I started to move my legs would not let me. Instead, I just stood in my hiding place watching rubbing my super hard cock through my pants. Their kisses became more passionate. His hands roamed freely over the bare skin of Lorrie's back. His right hand dipped down and slid into the back of Lorrie's shorts were he groped her ass cheeks. The only thing he could not do was fully embrace Lorrie without ruining her artwork. He broke their embrace and he asked her something and she blushed deeply but agreed. I watched dumbfounded as she turned to face him. She raised her arms above her head as if to surrender as both of the stranger's hands came up to Lorrie's breasts and he began touching, fondling and squeezing her bare nipples right there in public at the table! I should have stopped it right there. What kind of a man lets a complete stranger fondle his wife's nipples? What kind of a man watches a strange man fondle his wife's bare breasts? I did not move, my hardon would not let me. Lorrie was now completely caught in this stranger's web. She closed her eyes and gave him free reign even letting him kiss her nipples several times each. The stranger's hand slid over Lorrie bare stomach as he sucked her nipples. The man was not satisfied. His hand kept drifting lower down Lorrie's tummy until it contacted the waistband of Lorrie's shorts. In almost indiscernible movements he unsnapped her shorts, giving him the extra room he needed. Then to my complete dismay and amazement his hand dipped down inside of the front of my wife's shorts. She was letting his fingers caress her vulva. His middle finger was sliding up and down the length of Lorrie's moist cleft, tickling her stiff clit and dipping into her vagina which was doubtless soaking wet from her excitement. This was unreal; I had never expected to see my wife let another man have such intimate contact with her. That was it, I had had enough I was off to off to put a stop to this nonsense once and for all. Before I moved, however, Lorrie came to her senses and pulled his hand out of her shorts and then separated herself from him. Things had finely gone too far for her too. They talked some more but Lorrie did not let him touch or kiss her again. I am sure he apologized and I am sure Lorrie accepted. Eventually it came time for the stranger to leave and he must have made one last request from Lorrie because I saw her blush again and shook her head no. I wondered what he asked her. He looked at her and made a puppy dog face and asked her again, she turned him down. He stuck out his bottom lip in a fake pout. She laughed and turned him down. Undaunted, he kept coaxing her until she finally gave in and agreed. Whatever it was he wanted I was about to find out. Lorrie stood up and stepped a few steps away, he sat pointing the video camera at Lorrie. She smiled nervously and she hesitated, unsure of what she was about to do. I noticed Lorrie was barefoot; I had not seen her take off her shoes but that was nothing compared to what she was about to do. To my absolute amazement, Lorrie's hands unsnapped and unzipped her shorts before she pulled down and off and put on their table. She stood there in just her full coverage panties modeling for her stranger. He laughed at her very practical underwear, certainly telling her she should be wearing something sexier. I know, because I have told her the same thing repeatedly. She feigned anger but then laughed and probably told him her husband says the same thing as she continued modeling her underwear for the camera and him. Now I was sure that this was as far as she would go but it was not. Again, she stunned me by hooking her fingers in the sides of her panties and pulling them off too! Oregon Country Fair Now except for her painted chest she was totally naked in front of a perfect stranger in a public place, to boot! She smiled widely and posed for him again giving him a complete view of her exposed pussy slit and butt crack. She even pulled her pussy open for him to see all of her gooey goodness. She turned around and bent over and opened her pussy up from behind before doing the same with her ass hole. She was totally exposing herself to him. He was delighted too, as I watched his mouth move telling her how beautiful she was and all the other stuff a lucky guy would say if he could get a woman naked and expose her most intimate parts to him. As a final offering, Lorrie walked up to him and handed him her panties which he eagerly took from her and stuffed into his pocket to join her bra. He reached to touch her crotch but she slapped his hand away and I could tell she told him he "could look but not touch." He grinned sheepishly and feigned acting like a scolded school boy. Not wanting to push their luck, Lorrie put her shorts back on so that she would not get in trouble with the authorities before she returned to her seat next to her friend. He handed Lorrie a card and a pen and she wrote something down and handed it back to the stranger. He wrote something on another card which he gave her and she put in her purse. He finally had to leave and he got up and Lorrie followed. They moved to the main pathway saying their good-bye's. He ran his hand over the unpainted parts of her breasts and bare nipples one last time. Then they kissed! And they kissed again! Tongues intertwined and explored each others' mouths! His hands never left her breasts as he continued to repeatedly pinch her bare nipples between his thumbs and forefingers! I found myself wishing they could find a private place so I could watch them take their newfound lust to its ultimate conclusion. Reluctantly, Lorrie's friend finally left but only after he sucked and kissed her nipples several more times. And then that was that. Lorrie sat back down at a nearby table looking very smug and self-satisfied. It was obvious she was very turned on, I could tell from the way her nipples pointed out high and proud. She stayed seated at her table, both oblivious to and acknowledging any male admirers that passed giving her salacious stares. I was a mass of emotions. A part of me felt very angry and betrayed like Lorrie had been cheating on me. I also was angry that Lorrie was displaying herself so shamelessly; granted I probably deserved it for the blatant way I had been ogling the other topless women. Still, she is MY wife. More than anything, though, I was feeling incredibly turned on. First seeing the other topless women roaming around in public had had a predictable effect on me. Seeing Lorrie, however, getting topless and having her chest painted as other men ogled, what up until then had only been seen by me, had sent my lust into overdrive. In fact, the only topless woman I was interested now in was Lorrie. Second, seeing Lorrie cavorting with her new friend had only served to push my twisted brain to new heights of perverted thought. Her actions had brought out desires in me that I had long been suppressing. My cock was so hard I thought it would burst so I ducked into a nearby porta potty to relieve some of the excessive built up pressure. Inside, my mind filled not just with images of Lorrie being naked with this other man but also with graphic images of Lorrie sleeping with him. Effortlessly the stranger's cock moved in and out of my wife's vagina, coated liberally in the love dew gushing from my wife. I imagined the acrid smell of their sweaty bodies and the pungent odor of Lorrie's musky sex scent. As I watched the scene in my mind, stream after stream of my semen splashed into the blue water below me, it was as if I was watching the same thing inside of Lorrie as her stranger shot his sperm deep inside Lorrie's vagina. Strange the effect of seeing my wife topless and flirting with a stranger and letting him touch and even kiss her bare breasts and nipples had on me. Could I be a husband who wants to watch his wife with another man? Or men? I shook my head, not believing the depraved thoughts my mind was coming up with. Somewhat relieved but still shaken by the ludicrous thoughts my mind was thinking I stepped back out into the bright sunlight and went to find Lorrie and reclaim my wife and my life. Fortunately Lorrie had not moved; she seemed content to stay in her place so it was up to me to "find" her. I stood and watched a few minutes more before I walked over to where Lorrie was sitting. I did my best to act surprised and dumbfounded when she saw me. She stood, faced me and struck a pose with a hand on one hip and her hips cocked, one higher than the other and her painted breasts projected out as far as she could get them. She was magnificent. "Like it?" She asked acting coyly. "I did it for you." Her nipples were swollen and stood out high, long and proud. I would have sworn they were still wet, too, from where her friend had sucked on them a few minutes earlier. "Oh my God, Lorrie, what the... when... why," I stammered as I tried to act completely surprised at find my wife out in public topless. I stepped back to admire my wife's paint job this being the first time I had a chance to see it up close. Lorrie twisted to the left and then to the right with her breasts thrust out as far as she could, grinning proudly from ear to ear. "I assumed you wouldn't mind," she started explaining with a broad smile on her face, "You seemed so captivated by the women I just decided, with a little help from Jane, to surprise you and do it. What do you think?" She twirled around giving me a complete 360-degree of her topless body and paused in front of me for me to admire the artwork painted on her chest. The design was exquisite covering Lorrie's chest in flowers with blue, white and lavender petals; Lorrie's bare pink nipples formed the center of two of the flowers. Lorrie's artist had done a fantastic job, her artwork was indescribable. I made note of the smudges at the sides of Lorrie's breasts and her nipples showing where Lorrie's new friend had fondled, sucked and touched her. Lorrie could tell I had noticed them causing her to blush slightly and look uneasy when she saw me looking at them. Quickly, Lorrie's face beamed and she pushed her 34 B's out proudly for my inspection to distract me. My eyes were quickly drawn back to Lorrie's pert erect nipples standing tall on her breasts. I felt a need to do something, something I knew might freak Lorrie out. I leaned over and gently kissed and sucked on one nipple and then the other, knowing that Lorrie's male friend had done the same thing only minutes earlier. I also placed my fingers in the smudges he had left at the sides of her breasts. It was kind of like sloppy seconds but I felt like I was reclaiming my territory. Lorrie became strangely silent and her face looked funny, like she had just been caught with her hand in the cookie jar and she needed to tell me but could not. "Something wrong?" I asked her. "Hunh, no, no, nothing's wrong. It just feels weird having you do that here." She answered as she tried to hide the truth. Then smiling she said, "Take my picture." I took a lot of pictures of her, the very first I have ever taken of her in any form of undress. She was beside herself, it was like she had been liberated from some terrible captivity as she posed for me. Satisfied that I had made enough pictures she eventually demanded, "Come on and show me off." With Lorrie's hand in mine, we slowly began to meander through the other booths and displays and watch the other expositions. My attention was wholly on Lorrie though and the reaction of the men seeing her as we meander through the crowd. Oddly, with Lorrie at my side topless, I lost interest in checking out any other women. Instead, I was much more interested in parading around showing off my beautiful lady beside me. My exuberance and abundance of attention embarrassed Lorrie but she did not complain except in jest. Lorrie was happy and took deep pleasure in having my undivided attention; my transgressions from earlier this morning had been forgiven and forgotten, mostly anyway. We ran into Jane and her friends again. Jane smiled at Lorrie and commented on how great her body paint looked. Jane asked her if her "problem was solved," and Lorrie grinned and answered, "Yes, just like you said." They both looked at me at the same time and laughed. Obviously, I was the "problem" Jane was referring to. Jane stepped back to admire Lorrie's artwork and Jane's friends joined her. They all started talking at once and jabbering the way women do when their together. Then another shocker, Jane started touching Lorrie's breasts. Lorrie jumped from Jane's sudden intimate touching, causing Jane to laugh. I cannot begin to describe how odd it was to watch another woman touch my wife so intimately. Lorrie blushed deep red as Jane continued her examination. "Did he make these smudges?" Jane asked not so innocently. Lorrie turned a deeper shade of crimson and lied, "No, uh, um, I'm not sure how that..." She did not finish. Jane's eye brow raised knowingly as a smirk spread over her face. She knew better. Jane surprised both Lorrie and me by taking Lorrie's hand and placing it squarely on Jane's equally bare breast! "Here feel mine," Jane demanded as Lorrie felt of another woman's bare breast for the first time. Then there was a free for all again as each of the women took a turn feeling Lorrie's breasts and having Lorrie feel theirs. It was an odd turn on watching these women and my wife being so familiar with one another. The fun ended as the women exchanged contact information and hugged each other good bye; bare breast mashing against bare breast. Jane's parting jester was to give each of my wife's bare nipples a kiss! By now it was late and Lorrie and I needed to find a place to relieve the sexual tension that had built up during the day. I had expected Lorrie to cover up when we got to the car but to my surprise she stayed topless. Lorrie did not try to hide as we drove down the darkening highway toward our hotel. Even at the burger drive thru, Lorrie acted like normal much to the delight and surprise of the young servers who came to check out the painted topless lady. By the time we got our order, the line of cars behind us stretched all the way around the building and into the street! At the hotel, Lorrie just strolled through the lobby as pretty as you please as everyone present gawked at my beautiful topless wife. She even put a little more bounce in her steps to add extra jiggle to her bare paint covered tits! Back in the safety of our room we made sweet love repeatedly. I came three times and I have no idea how many times Lorrie came as we relieved ourselves of the intense sexual tension built up during the day. I got up during the night to go to the bathroom. Remembering Lorrie's friend had given her a card that Lorrie had put in her purse, I took Lorrie's purse with me. With the door closed so that I did not disturb Lorrie sleeping, I found the card. It gave his name which I cannot use here and identified him as a Vice President with a large software firm in Seattle. He also had written down his personal email address and cell phone number for Lorrie. Did Lorrie give him the same information about her when she handed him her slip of paper? I was extremely bewildered and confused. Did Lorrie intend to contact this man again, maybe meet him? What does it mean? I put the card back in her purse exactly where I had found it and decided not to confront Lorrie with this but to wait and see how things play out. Have I done the right thing?