A divorced woman started using a dating app and thought she discovered an amazing man to share the rest of her life with, but love isn’t always what it seems.
Sarah was 40 years old when her ex-husband asked her for a divorce. He told her he had fallen in love with a co-worker and couldn’t hide it any longer. The news broke her heart, but there was nothing she could do if he wanted to leave.
They didn’t have any children, and Sarah felt more alone than ever. She focused on work and saw her friends every once in a while. However, anyone could see that she was depressed. That’s when her friend, Maddie, suggested she start using Tinder.
Sarah, it’s what everyone does these days. I use it all the time,” Maddie said.
“Dating apps are used for one thing, and it’s not for making meaningful relationships,” Sarah replied.
“Oh no! That’s just your prejudice. Tinder can be anything you want it to be. It can be casual, but there’s something about chatting that makes you braver, you know?” her friend continued.
Sarah still wasn’t sure but downloaded the app to please her friend. She set up her profile and forgot about it for a while. However, she was bored one night and started swiping right on several attractive men.
She matched with several of them but didn’t respond to some of the messages yet. The whole thing was still new to her, and Sarah didn’t want to pull the trigger on dating just yet.
However, one gorgeous man named Jason sent her a greeting, and Sarah really wanted to respond. She gathered her courage and sent a reply. They started texting back and forth about nothing at first.
Jason eventually told her that he actually lived several towns away, but he traveled through her area. That’s why he appeared on her Tinder feed. Few exchanges later, they began using iMessage to talk instead of the app, and soon enough, Jason started calling her.
Hey!” he greeted during one phone call.
“Hello! It’s nice to talk to you finally. I’ve been watching that show you recommended, and it’s great,” Sarah said.
“That’s fantastic, baby. Wow, I can’t believe that I’ve connected so well with someone over texts. It’s never happened before,” Jason added.
“Oh, me neither! I never thought this kind of thing would work. But we have so much in common,” she continued. Their first phone calls continued like that as if they were mostly good friends.
But a few of them got steamier, and Sarah really wanted to meet this man in person. She was so in love and couldn’t believe that they had never even met.
“I really want to go on a date with you. Can’t you come to town?” she told him one night.
“I’ve been so busy with work. There’s this huge expansion happening, and I need to stay on top of things,” he explained.
“That’s too bad. Maybe I can come to you?” Sarah asked.
“That won’t work either. I’m so busy here that I wouldn’t be able to see you at all. Babe, I promise to take some time to see you once this crazy restructure is over,” Jason added.
Sarah let the subject go and moved on to more pleasant topics. She really wanted to see Jason but understood that work was pretty important right now. Luckily, their conversations were so amazing that she couldn’t get enough.
When Maddie asked about the guy, Sarah couldn’t stop gushing about how wonderful he was. Jason was sensitive, funny, manly, and had a pretty successful job, although she still wasn’t sure where. But everything was going great and she had Maddie to thank for that.
One day, Jason called and announced that he finally had a free weekend and he was going to buy tickets to see her. Sarah couldn’t believe it. It was going to be their first date, and maybe more. They already knew so much about each other.
Unfortunately, things changed the following day. “I’m sorry, babe. I’ve just been let go from the company. I can’t afford the tickets anymore. I recently spent a huge amount fixing my house, and I’m down to no savings,” Jason said through the phone.
Oh no, honey! That’s terrible. How could they do this when you worked so hard?” Sarah asked.
“I don’t know, babe. I was up for a promotion, but they went with someone else. Nepotism, you know?” he answered.
“Look, I’m worried about you. Won’t you get a severance check soon?” she inquired.
“I don’t know how long that’s going to take with the restructure. They have to, but I don’t know how I’ll make it this month,” he said
Give me your Venmo details. I’ll send you something to tide you over,” Sarah immediately offered. Jason tried to refuse the money but eventually caved. He must have been desperate, and Sarah was willing to help her boyfriend through anything.
“I’ll pay you back as soon as I get another job. Thanks so much, babe!” he said and hung up. Sarah didn’t hear anything from him for several days. She tried not to worry, thinking that he was just busy job-hunting. But it was hard.
When he finally called her back, Jason had an odd request in place. “Babe, I’ve finally landed a new job. But I wanted to see you this weekend before I start on Monday. Do you think you could buy the tickets for me?” he asked.
Oh, let me see if I have enough left and Venmo you the money,” Sarah answered, a little flustered. No word from Jason in days, and suddenly he wants more money? She might not be the best at love, but she wasn’t stupid either.
So, Sarah decided to call her brother, a police officer in her town. She asked him to do a background search and gave him as much information about this man.
Later, she was shocked when her brother revealed that Jason was wanted in this state and several others for being a notorious scammer of women. Her brother knew cops who lived near Jason and would send some people the following day.
Coincidentally, Jason called the next day to ask her about the tickets. “Sweetheart, you haven’t sent me the money. Don’t you want to see me?” he asked in his sweet voice that Sarah now knew was all part of the deception.
“No, baby. I have a huge surprise for you! I’m in your town and will be at your door soon!” Sarah answered and hung up quickly.
With Sarah’s help, the police arrested Jason, and several other women he conned were able to get justice. Meanwhile, Sarah didn’t give up on dating, but she was much more cautious since then.
What can we learn from this story?
Be careful online.
Dating apps and even social media can be wonderful, but you always have to be careful because not everyone has the best intentions.
2. Don’t try to rush love. Take your time getting to know people before you rush into anything, especially when it comes to money
