Rose, Charlotte - Bayou Rescue [The Shifters of Alligator Bend 1] (Siren Publishing Ménage Everlasting) Read Online Free PDF Page A

seems pretty resistant to being our mate.”
    Serafine shook her head. “What, you think that just because your bodies want each other, that it’s gonna be easy? Your mate don’t just fall into your arms. Y’all don’t just live happily ever after the second y’all look into each other’s eyes. That ain’t how it works. You’re gonna have to fight for each other, and you’re gonna have to prove yourselves. It ain’t a decision she should make lightly, understand? If Adele asked you to mate her right now, I’d be worryin’. You gotta struggle to earn your mate.”
    Xavier’s jaw dropped. “You’re tellin’ me that Oscar and I have found our mate, but we still have to work for her?”
    “Sorry to let you down,” Adele said, not making any attempt to conceal her sarcasm.
    “You haven’t let nobody down, honey,” Serafine said. “Life is supposed to work this way. Now, I’m willin’ to bet you’ve had enough shock. Wanna head home?”
    I’ve been ready for hours . Rather than offend her hosts, though, Adele merely nodded her head.
    “Why don’t these two guide you back?” Serafine suggested. “It’ll give you a chance to get to know ’em better.”
    Adele’s mind raced as she tried to come up with an excuse. She wasn’t sure she was ready to spend time alone with these two men. But she also knew she wouldn’t be able to find her way back to New Orleans unassisted.
    “Why don’t I go, actually?” Georgina asked. “Adele and I have a few things to discuss, anyway. She and I could use the private time.”
    “Fair enough,” Serafine said. She turned to Xavier and Oscar. “Guess you two are gonna have to wait a bit before gettin’ your mate.”
    Adele turned to her so-called mates. “It was wonderful to make your acquaintances,” she said. She offered her hand to shake. As Oscar’s palm touched hers, she felt a pulse shoot through her arm. Her whole body began to tingle, her pussy in particular. When she took Xavier’s hand in hers, the experience was just as intense. Although she had no interest in mating, although she was not about to give up her life to live as a half-gator, she wanted to find a private place, rip her clothes off, and fuck them until they were all too exhausted to move.
    Maybe there’s something to this. She started her boat, waiting for Georgina to pull up beside her.

    * * * *

    The noisy boats didn’t allow much space for conversation on the ride home, and Adele’s mind raced with questions about this gator congregation and the men who were supposedly her mates. As the lights of New Orleans came into view, though, Georgina cut her engine. Adele followed suit, and they drifted side by side along the river for a few minutes before Georgina spoke.
    “I’m sorry I blow off important work meetings so often,” she said. “When the group decides they need me at home for one reason or another, it’s almost impossible to get out of my obligations. The congregation is pretty insular. The kids get sent to the local high school, and some of us go to college, but our options are limited. The nature of our power means we can’t be away from the congregation for too long, so we have to be commuter students. No living in dorms, no living in the city. If you get a college degree, the congregation expects for that to be the end of your education. You focus on contributing to the fishing business full-time. I’m the only one in recent memory, if ever, who has enrolled in a graduate program.”
    “Why all the restrictions? Because you’re afraid of shifting at a moment’s notice?”
    “Sort of, but as Serafine said, that hasn’t been a problem with the recent generations. We’ve learned to control our bodies pretty well. The mating season shift is an issue, of course, but only for a limited time during the year. Part of it is the curse. We would wither and die away from the congregation for an entire semester. But it wasn’t always so restrictive. The congregation