“Which Elizabeth?” Caroline asked sharply.
“Bennet. Jane’s sister,” Bingley replied, too lightly. “You remember her—from the gala.”
Darcy didn’t bother hiding the look he shot his friend. It said,Was that necessary?
Bingley immediately caught the reprimand and coughed into his napkin, mumbling something about salad.
Darcy exhaled through his nose. He regretted telling him. But really, what were the odds it would stay secret? If he hadn’t said anything, Elizabeth probably would’ve told Jane, and Jane would’ve definitely told Bingley. The chain reaction was inevitable.
Still, now that it had surfaced, there was no way to politely dodge the questions.
“So,” Caroline said slowly, “she doesn’t like your app… but she is on it anyway?”
There it was. The room leaned in without meaning to.
Darcy lifted his glass, took a measured sip, and said nothing yet.
Mrs. Hurst was quicker. “That does seem rather contradictory. If she thinks the whole concept is ridiculous, what was she doing there in the first place?”
“Exactly,” Caroline said, seizing the opening. “You don’t download a dating app you despise unless you’re either bored, desperate, or very calculated.”
Bingley shifted uncomfortably in his seat. “Or curious,” he offered weakly.
Caroline ignored him. “I mean, let’s be honest. She made quite a performance out of disliking it. Mocked the premise. Questioned its ethics. And then—surprise—she signs up.” She tilted her head, eyes sharp. “One might wonder what she was really looking for.”
Mrs. Hurst nodded along. “Status, perhaps. Visibility. A wealthy match.”
Darcy’s fingers tightened around the stem of his glass.
Caroline smiled thinly. “Or maybe she just hoped to meet someone with means. I’ve heard that sort of thing is quite common on these platforms.”
“That’s enough,” Darcy said, his voice calm but edged.
Caroline blinked, almost delighted. “Oh? Am I wrong?”
“She joined the app for her own reasons,” Darcy said evenly.
Caroline arched an eyebrow. “But youknewit was her when you went on the date.”
“No,” Darcy said. “I didn’t.”
The table paused.
Mrs. Hurst frowned. “You didn’t?”
“No.”
Caroline leaned forward. “So shecatfishedyou?”
Darcy’s jaw tightened. “No. She didn’t know it was me either.”
Caroline blinked. “Then how—”
“It’s a rather long story. Let’s just say we both used aliases and didn’t disclose our identities—for the fun of it—during the chatting phase,” Darcy explained briefly. “We scheduled a date. That was all.”
“Isn’t that dangerous?” Caroline asked, her brows arching. “I know America is safe, but kidnapping is still a thing, right? Two strangers meeting in some random place… anyone could exploit that.”
“Well, some people take chances,” Darcy said simply. “Besides, the app performs a thorough identity check. If you commit a crime on our app, you can be traced. We also advise users to be careful with how they interact. People can fake identities anywhere, even on apps that insists on displaying real names and photos. And in this age of AI, everything can be faked.”
