If you don’t know much about cougars, here’s why they’re the hottest dates you could have

Age-gap relationships can raise and eyebrow or two.  Remember when Demi Moore married another Hollywood actor, Ashton Kutcher?  The universal talking point was that the bride was 15 years older than the groom.  However, older women date younger men the world over.  And for every female who questions why any mature, sophisticated career woman would choose a much younger lover, there are many more who already know the answer: these partnerships can be incredibly successful.

Younger females are more likely to feel the need to conform: to fashion, hairstyles, leisure activities or social media trends.  Weekends might be spent in ‘happening’ nightclubs or wine bars, where they can become immersed in the hormonal melting pot with all the other 20somethings.  Not to put too fine a point on it, life for young singletons is often solely dedicated to the pursuit of sex.  The idea of getting seriously involved will undoubtedly be at the back of everyone’s mind.  But for a lot of these youngsters, that’s where it stays.

What might constitute ‘middle aged’ or ‘mature’ is so subjective the terms are meaningless.  But what can’t be denied is that many older women want something more fulfilling in life.  Welcome to the vibrant world of cougars.  For anyone unfamiliar with this generic definition, cougars are older females who have no qualms about admitting that it’s younger lovers who float their boat.  In fact, they absolutely thrive on age gap relationships.

Younger girls might be wearing the same unfeasibly short skirts and low-cut tops that all the other girls in their gang are wearing while they stumble over the paving stones, flitting from one garish nightspot to the next.  Older women appreciate there is more than one type of sexy.  ‘In your face’ might work for the drunken young guys ogling across packed dance floors.  Cougars will still nurture the voluptuousness they possessed years ago.  The difference is they know exactly how to keep this simmering.  Sophistication and experience elevates sexy to a whole new level.

Cougars take a fierce pride in their appearance; a foxiness that will turn male heads far more readily than a smile from a face overly-caked with make-up.  The right combination of killer heels, cascading hair and robustly displayed cleavage will not only turn heads, it may well cause serious spraining injuries, especially when accessorized with a stylish designer jacket or dazzling jewelry.

Women in their late 30s and 40s may well have forged successful careers.  They could also be divorcees, who’ve gone through the whole domestic process but whose kids have now flown the nest, leaving them with an expensively furnished house and a queen-sized bed with a vacancy for a virile occupant.  And here’s where we come to one of the key defining attributes that make cougars tick.

They’re not interested in relationships with guys their own age.  Why would they ditch that unfit husband who came home from work every night and flaked out in his armchair and nodded off during the live FA Cup tie, just to go out with someone similar?  Or the partner who was forever making up excuses about overnight business conferences only to return with lipstick stains on his lapels?  Cougars are women who have found themselves with the opportunity to start life afresh.  And intend doing so with zest.  Wherever their quest for energetic and red-blooded younger guys begins, introduction from a mutual acquaintance or a free dating site, they’ll know exactly what they’re hunting for.

They’ll be looking for the attention of much younger suitors, but on a more complex level than the casual relationships of their youth.  What they’ll be craving is red-hot sex with young men; the terms will be more clearly defined than just hooking up.  Memories of those testosterone-driven males who were good in bed but less reliable at remembering first names will be banished.  Nor will they necessarily be looking to get enmeshed in anything long-term.  It’s all about passion but passion within an intelligent relationship, where the younger male might have a libido to match, but will also be expected to show her attention and appreciate the more cultivated interests experience has given her.