Online dating
Susanne, 45, a personal trainer, met her husband of four years, Steve Clark, 49, a business coach, on an internet dating site. They live in Little Easton, Essex, with her teenage daughter and two sons and his two teenage daughters.
How do you ever begin to write your own online dating profile? "Kind, homely mum seeks partner for lonely nights." Too eager. "Super-fit, successful blonde." A touch egocentric. After much cringing I settled for, "I feel silly writing this but with the courage from a glass of wine, here goes… Genuine, attractive, forties mum of three" And took a deep breath.
By the next morning, I had 25 responses. My first date was with the Milk Tray man – black polo neck and chocolate brown eyes. In his emails, he'd boasted of his skiing skills. In reality, boasting about everything was his only line in conversation.
Then there was the chap who had opted for a baseball cap in his profile photo, only to reveal biker-style greasy hair on our date. I began to lose heart.
Then an email caught my eye. It was from a man named Steve. He had twinkly eyes and a love for life that seemed to jump off the page. We sent a few messages before he said, "Go on, be brave. Call me tonight." So I did. And we talked for almost two hours.
We arranged to meet at a wine bar a few weeks later. As soon as his car pulled up my stomach flipped - he definitely lived up to his picture. He was tanned with kind brown eyes - I fancied him straight away. He was friendly and genuine, and we talked for so long that our waiter eventually had to ask us to leave. I was sold.
I've never looked back. I feel so lucky that I got a second chance to be happy. But, in part, I took responsibility for my own happiness the night I wrote that profile.
For more information, visit the website datingdirect.com
