Nop: The distance is a convenient excuse. Sometimes couples want to experiment/get a breath of fresh air. "Taking a break" is a widely accepted, relatively clear way of allowing both to have outside encounters in a don't ask, don't tell environment.

Helio: The most fun option involves asking R if she wants to take part in a three-way.

The regular way involves bringing your GF up in a casual way. I'm sure the two of you did something together lately that could be commented on normally. Talk about, say, The Avengers. Mention once that you went and saw it with your girlfriend. The issue has been raised, and then the two of you can talk about the movie with no loss of face for anybody involved.

Sparky: I'm going to pick my jaw up off the floor right now. Deleting texts while he's talking to you about those very texts takes some major balls. And some less than stellar brains.

The big question is how much you like the guy. Every time I've been with someone and I felt that there were things I wasn't being told, problems surfaced soon after. If he's super-important, make a comment to the effect that you'd rather be told if something happened, and then occasionally snoop to make sure he's not doing anything without saying. If it's less important, move on to someone who won't make you wonder if they're up to something behind your back. Make no mistake, making this work will take work. Sometimes partners aren't worth the projected effort.