Final Play (Matchplay Series) Read Online Free Page B

us.”
    “You’re so funny,” I teased. “Did anyone ever tell you that?”
    “Everyone always tells me that,” she boasted.
    If I wasn’t driving, I would have glared at her. 
    “I met someone at the wedding, a girl, who I’m very interested in.”
    “Did I hear this correctly?” Marney piped up from the back seat. “Did Lucas actually say he was getting ready to pursue a woman?”
    “I’ve dated plenty of women,” I stated in my defense.
    “And by plenty, you actually mean a few, like one or two,” Marney teased.
    “I’ve dated more than two people.”
    Marney stuck her head in between me and my sister. I could feel her breath on the back of my neck. “And just how many of those few women did you actually pursue? I have a feeling most of them pursued you.”
    She wasn’t wrong but I also wasn’t going to give her the be nefit of knowing so. “Can I just finish my story please?”
    “Yeah, okay, as long as you admit that you’ve only dated a few women.” Marney was tough and I knew she wasn’t going to let it go.
    “Fine, I’ve dated four girls. Are you happy? I believe that constitutes use of the word plenty but I’m willing to concede that I could be wrong on that point.”
    “Would you just finish your story,” Olivia pressed. “At this rate, we’ll be back in the city before you even get to the point.”
    I could hear Marney plop back into her seat and I continued. “Ella is Evan’s sister.”
    My sister threw up her hand. “Wait! Evan has a sister? How did we not know this?”
    “I guess he doesn’t talk about her very much. I got the impression that they don’t get along very well.”
    “Considering Evan is kind of an asshole, that might not be a bad thing,” my sister so aptly pointed out.
    “Well,” I hesitated before I continued. “There is a specific reason Evan doesn’t get along with his sister and why he doesn’t talk about her.”
    “Don’t keep us in suspense,” my sister prompted.
    I decided the direct approach would be the best course of action. If Ella and I did end up in a relationship, my sister would have to know about her issues.
    “Evan thinks his sister is crazy. That’s his word. She has been diagnosed with a mental illness—bipolar disorder.”
    “Wow,” Marney declared as she stuck her head between me and my sister again. “That’s some heavy shit.”
    “You’re actually kind of scaring me,” Olivia admitted and the fact that she was scared, scared me. My sister was rarely scared by anything.
    “Why?” I asked.
    My sister continued. “First of all, you don’t pursue women. You’re the most passive guy I’ve ever met in my life and unless a girl completely throws herself at you, she usually doesn’t stand a chance. You actively pursuing someone, or even thinking about it, says something. Second, I don’t know too much about bipolar disorder but from what I do know, it’s some serious stuff. Do you know what you’re getting into with Ella?”
    “I have no idea what I’m getting into,” I admitted. I didn’t want to admit that I didn’t care. I was going to go after her anyway. But I knew if I told my sister that it would scare her even more. 
    “Is she hot?” Marney threw in.
    I wasn’t sure how to describe Ella or how I felt about her. I had never felt that way about another person before. I felt a deep connection that I didn’t understand because I really didn’t know her. I felt overwhelmingly attracted to her but not just physically, although there was certainly a physical dimension. I was attracted to her very being. I knew it sounded completely ludicrous, like I had just stepped out of some kind of New Age convention, or something equally unscientific and completely irrational. So I just said, “She’s intriguing,” and hoped it would suffice.
    Of course, it didn’t.
    “Intriguing?” Marney scoffed. “What does that mean?”
    “Are you asking me to define the word for you or are you not satisfied with the