BTW, a big thing you can do to help him feel he has the space he needs is to reassure him that you understand you are BOTH hoping for a great R and passionate M. It is a time to try to build that R. You are both sincere, good people trying for that. But if it doesn't work out, that doesn't make him a bad guy.
If he feels like he'd be a bad guy if the reconciliation doesn't work out, then the pressure and guilt feelings will make him feel coerced and it will be confusing to him what he really wants for himself. He needs to be genuinely free to discover if your new R, your new M is right for him. And so do you.
