So I've always been a little more "monogomish" where I usually have one primary partner I'm talking to most frequently and seeing sexually, but occasional sexual encounters with other women.

My girlfriend and I have been dating for about 1.5 years now and I recently moved across the country. We've got an open relationship now, which she was initially hesitant on doing (we've had MFM threesomes together and one soft swap MFMF with another couple.) Does anyone else feel their attraction to their partner get stronger in an open relationship / casually dating situation when you know your partner might be seeing someone else?

I've had sex with a few other girls here and there since I moved. They haven't been particularly great partners but it's happened and I've asked my GF if she is okay with me seeing those girls. She usually is okay and asks me about who they are/how i met them/did i know them before/am i friends with their friends. She's not been "excited" about the encounters but usually is okay with me doing so.

And for the past few months, she hasn't been too interested in meeting other guys (she's really picky), which I will admit, is preferable to my self-interests. I pretty much internally accepted that she wasn't going to be pursuing other guys..

Recently she texted me out of the blue and asked if I was okay with her hooking up with someone. I was totally fine with it and told her I hope she has a nice fun night out. But I have this deep, renewed primal sexual attraction to her after she told me that it did actually happen and he came over to her place. I desire her much so much more now that someone else has hooked up with her.

Has anyone else experienced something like this? Of course, I'm a little jealous (which I consider normal and healthy - and jealous that he had fun with her and not me!), but I feel like I've taken for granted what I appreciate about my girlfriend - the great memories we've had and the amazing sex we have when we see each other. I feel like I'm now competing harder to make her happy, such as calling her more often and keeping up with how her days are going (i usually get bogged down with work/studying and am a little slow to text/communicate back)

I don't think I'd want to hear from her the details of what exactly happened when they hooked up (like he did x, then he did y to me), but it's really interesting accessing how I feel about it. I've never been a really jealous person to where I think hatefully or angrily to another woman, but it's interesting that these feelings of jealousy make me want to be a better partner to her so that she remains happy with me and any other guy she meets remains just sexual in nature and not emotional.

Can anyone relate?