I Almost Catfished a Married Man

I thought my intentions were as bad as his. They weren’t.

On paper he looked perfect. High paying, well respected job. Solid hobbies. Cute dog. Ivy league education. There was one blank not filled in. One box not checked.

Married.

I’ve been burned before by men who sound great on paper. They are a dime a dozen. A charming bunch. Because of this, I’ve learned to do my research.

Call it paranoia. Call it skepticism. Call it realism. Call it not wanting my body to be found in a dumpster.

After a couple weeks of talking back and forth he gave me his number. One would think someone with his level of intelligence would know what I would do next. Maybe I’m far less trusting than others.

I reverse searched his number and found his name.

The first search result made my heart race. It was a wedding registry site. The wedding would have been a few months ago. How tragic, I thought. Someone got left at the alter.

A social media search let me know I was wrong. There was a wedding. A smiling bride. Photos. A recently changed profile picture.

It all happened. He was married.