P.S. from Paris(16)

“Couldn’t sleep.”

“Come wait tables here with me again tonight—that’ll tackle your insomnia, believe me.”

Mia went into the cold room, carrying a box of eggplants. Daisy called her back.

“Wait! We keep vegetables at room temperature, otherwise they lose their flavor.”

“I’ve just about had enough of this!” Mia said, turning around.

“But the fish does go in the refrigerator.”

“Ugh.” Mia turned around again. “I wonder if Cate Blanchett ever has to pack fish into restaurant fridges,” she shouted from the walk-in.

“Let’s talk about it after you’ve won an Oscar.”

Mia emerged with a slab of butter, grabbed a baguette from the bread basket, and sat down at the bar. Daisy brought the rest of the food through and finished putting it away.

“I accidentally stumbled upon something funny while I was checking my email,” said Mia, her mouth full.

“And what was that?”

“A dating site.”

“Accidentally, you said?”

“Cross my heart, hope to die!” said Mia.

“I told you not to go through my stuff.”

“Tell me this. Have you actually met men that way?”

“What are you, my mother? Don’t look so shocked. It’s not like it’s a porn site, you know.”

“I know, but still . . .”

“Still what? On the bus or the métro, or even walking down the street, people spend more time staring at their phones than looking at what’s going on around them. The only way you can get anyone’s attention these days is online.”

“You haven’t answered my question,” said Mia. “Does it actually work?”

“I’m not an actress, I don’t have an agent, I don’t have any fans, I don’t do red-carpet events, and there aren’t any pictures of me on magazine covers. Given that I spend most of my life inside a kitchen, I don’t fit the profile of a desirable woman. So yes, I joined a dating site, and yes, I have met men that way.”

“Any nice ones?”

“Nice ones are rare, but you can’t blame the Internet for that.”

“How do you do it?”

“Do what?”

“The first date, for example. How does it work?”

“Same as if you’d met in a café, except that you know a bit more about him.”

“Well, you know what he chooses to tell you, anyway.”

“Once you learn to read between the lines of a profile, you can usually tell the difference.”

“And how do you learn to read between the lines?”

“And why do you care?”

Mia thought about this.

“For a role,” she said evasively.

“For a role,” Daisy muttered. “Of course.”

She sighed and sat down next to Mia.

“The username often tells you quite a bit about a guy’s personality. ‘Mum, I’d like you to meet Teddybear21, who is much kinder and gentler than Maximus_the_Menace, your own personal favorite.’ How about Misterbig—subtle, eh? ElBello? Maybe just a bit vain . . . Or how about this: I once received a message from a guy who went by the name of Gazpacho2000. Can you imagine getting hot and heavy with a Gazpacho?”

Mia burst out laughing.

“Then there’s what they write about themselves. You wouldn’t believe some of the things they say, not to mention the spelling errors. Honestly, it’s pathetic at times.”

“Wow. That bad?”

“My chef won’t be here for another hour. Why don’t we head home and you can see for yourself?”

Back at the apartment, Daisy logged on to the dating site and gave Mia a demonstration.

“Here. Have a look at this.”

Hi, are you beautiful and fun? If the answer’s yes, I’m the man for you. Not only am I loads of fun, but I’m also charming and passionate . . .

“Sorry, no match, Hervé51, since I’m ugly and boring . . . Seriously, though, where do they come up with this crap? And look,” she went on, “here it shows the guys who have visited your profile.”

A new window opened, and Daisy scrolled through the roster of potential suitors.

“This one describes himself as calm, and I believe him—it looks like he smoked a bong before taking the picture! And it was taken in an Internet café, of all places . . . how reassuring. And look at this one: I’m looking for someone to pose for me . . . Please, say no more.”

She moved on down the list.

“That one looks okay,” said Mia. “Never married, adventurous, executive, likes music, going to restaurants.”

“Not so fast, check this bit out,” said Daisy, pointing out another line: “I’ll bet you a bag of Kinders that you read my profile all the way to the bottom. You can take your chocolates and shove them, Dandy26.”

“And what are those over there?” Mia asked.

“The profiles automatically selected by the site. Based on what you enter about yourself, they have compatibility algorithms that suggest matches for you. It’s the digital equivalent of a matchmaker, with a dash of chance.”

“Let’s try it!”