As we continued our newfound games, our relationship continued to grow. Looking back over previous months, we could literally see the progress that we were making. Looking at our previous years of marriage, it seemed that we continued to have the same arguments and issues over and over again. I think that if I had to use one word to describe our marriage from before, it would have to be "frustrating" over any other single word. It seemed that no matter what I did, Katie would be upset with me. Nothing I did was right. She seemed incapable of understanding what I wanted out of life and never seemed to understand whatever I did try to do for her.
To be fair, Katie felt much the same way about me. I was always concerned with how I looked at a situation or what I wanted out of something. Both of us were right in our analysis of the situation. And both of us were wrong.
We were both guilty of the same trait. We focused on our own interpretation of a situation. We would each try to explain our viewpoint and get caught up in trying to get the other person to understand where we were coming from. It dissolved into a battle of wills every time, leaving us both more resolute in our own opinion that we each were correct and the other one was being inconsiderate or unyielding.
Our games were obviously affecting how we were dealing with each other. We definitely were opening up to each other more than we ever had before. That alone made quite a difference. I think that a lot of misunderstanding obviously comes from not being able to read each other's minds. In our own heads we know what we are doing and why, but our intents are not always obvious to our partners. Beyond that, I think that we tend to hold a lot of ourselves back for fear of rejection. We don't tell our partner everything. That just interferes further with them having any hope of understanding where we are coming from.
So our games led to opening up and discussing things with each other. As we learned to listen to each other, we each opened up more and we both began to understand each other more. Just as the cycle of our relationship before tore us apart, the cycle of our new relationship built and strengthened us.
One sign I saw in our increased understanding of each other was as our games became more spontaneous. Sure, there were things that we talked at length about and planned ahead. Then there were the spur of the moment events that one of us would say something and we would both immediately be into it and just go ahead and do it.
Most of the time this was just something simple. We would be out someplace and I'd tell Katie to show me her boobs so she'd lift her shirt and flash me or we'd dare each other to take our clothes off in the car. Katie would tell me that if I showed her my dick she would suck on it. Of course I'd pull it out for her. Just quick impulsive things.
Sometimes things got a bit more involved. Given some privacy in an otherwise public place, we'd dare each other to remove underwear. Not just having Katie step out of her panties while wearing a skirt or dress, mind you. The more challenge the better. We're talking having to remove shoes and jeans to remove underwear. I can still picture one episode where Katie ended up jumping up and down as she tried to get back into a particularly tight pair of jeans.
Then there were a few times that that our spontaneous activities got fairly involved. One incident that comes to mind was a particular Summer Saturday morning. We were going out with friends that evening and had a number of things to do around the house, but decided to take the morning and go for a hike. We got up early, grabbed a quick bite to eat, and headed out of town. The air was still cool under the trees as we started the hike up to the overlook. Once we reached the overlook and the sun broke through the trees it was warm on our faces and exposed arms. As we walked out on the rocks to the edge, I pulled my shirt off over my head to bask in the warmth of the sun. Katie came up behind me and I wasn't too surprised to find that she had also taken her shirt off by the time that she joined me. I put my arm around her shoulders and pulled her close beside me as both of us stood bare chested to the morning sun.
We stood there together for awhile, just enjoying the view, fresh air, and sun. The hike was only about an hour and a half from where we had parked. A nice, simple hike to enjoy. The trail brought you out to this point along the ridge and there was a bit of a clearing at the rocks. Most people just came out to the overlook, but you could pick your way through the trees in either direction along the ridge and there were other rock outcroppings from which to enjoy the view. After a bit, we decided to opt for a bit more privacy. We had not seen anyone else out on the trail this morning, but figured that we wanted a bit of warning if anyone else should happen along. Anybody that came up to the overlook would spend some time there before they would start exploring around. We would hear them and be able to cover up if there were kids or folks that might get offended.
We walked back along the ridge for a bit and found another good rock outcrop that was out of direct sight of the first overlook. I found a nook to sit in and spread my shirt out to have something to lean back against. When I was settled in, Katie settled in beside me, curling up under my arm and against my chest. We sat there for ten or fifteen minutes, just drinking in the silence and basking in the sun. We watched a couple of hawks play in the thermals and a chipmunk scurrying along the rocks.