I’m a 54M, but I was a youthful 53 back when I first met her on Bumble at the end of August.

We did a 2-hour video call within just days and that went pretty well.

So we met for cocktails the following week. Two-hours flew by again and she calls her Uber home. As we say our goodbyes SHE comes in for a smooch on the lips.

And this will be the last time I see her.

We make a date for dinner the next week. As I’m 10 minutes from the restaurant she texts and says she must cancel as there’s a client issue that she has to stay at the office and handle. (She did forewarn of this possibility). She apologizes and says next week will be better for her.

Well, a few days later when we try to schedule, the next week is month end close, and some colleagues are out on vacay. “Next week I will have more free time!”

I ping her a week later and get a “Not this week. How about next?”

The next week she exhausts herself being a surrogate auntie for a weekend long event for her out-of-town girlfriend’s kid. So too wiped out.

On the 7th week she’s unavailable as a good friend got blindsided with divorce papers and is staying with her for a little bit.

I give her a week of space but check in on week 9. She now has COVID.

A bit of small banter over the next week.

Then a final “So are you back to 100%?” from me six days ago. And poof! Ghost.

In one way, I wonder if this was just one of the women who fear the reaction of a man if they reject him. But then again, there was interest shown by her, but rarely active… mostly in response.

Did I miss the rejection signal somewhere or what?