Free Rose, Charlotte - Bayou Famine [Shifters of Alligator Bend 2] (Siren Publishing Ménage Everlasting) by Charlotte Rose Page B

life. Glancing around, she realized she was still alone. As Narcisse put the boat in gear, she realized it was just as easy as it had been a few years before.
    She had no idea how to get out of the swamp. She didn’t have a map, and she certainly couldn’t have asked for one without someone becoming suspicious. Narcisse knew that Alligator Bend was east of New Orleans. She focused her gaze on the sunset and headed for the horizon.

    * * * *

    “Narcisse?” Armand asked, cautiously coming through the door to their quarters. He’d been eager to check on her all afternoon, but he sensed that she needed some space after their difficult conversation over lunch. He felt sorry that things hadn’t gone the way she had intended, and suspected she wasn’t entirely happy with the compromise they’d settled on. He just hoped Narcisse wasn’t too angry at the two of them.
    When Narcisse didn’t answer, Armand stepped further into the room. The bed was pristine. It didn’t even look like she’d been there at all, much less gone to sleep like he thought she would. Walking closer, he noticed a folded piece of paper resting on the pillows. The second his eyes landed on it, he felt as though he had been punched in the gut. He didn’t know what it said, but he was sure it wasn’t good.

    Dear Armand and Nelson—
    I’m sorry to leave like this, but it’s for the best. I believe that I gave this whole mating thing a fair shot. But it’s become clear to me that I don’t really belong with the two of you, or with your congregation.
    I also never thought I’d say this, but there are parts of my old life that I miss. I think it would be best if I returned to Houston, found a new job, and started over there.
    Since I didn’t have my own boat, I had to take Armand’s. Armand, I’m very sorry for stealing it. I just needed to get out, and it was my only way through the bayou. I docked it in New Orleans, and I hope it’s okay. If it’s not, I’ll pay you back for it as soon as I get back on my feet.
    I’m sorry it didn’t work out. Thank you for being so good to me while I was here. I will always remember the adventure we had.
    -Narcisse

    “Nelson, where are you?” Armand yelled.
    “What’s wrong?” he asked, running into the bedroom.
    Armand thrust the note into his hands. “This is what’s wrong.”
    Nelson read it over and then let it fall to the floor. “Shit. What are we gonna do?”
    “I have no fucking clue. Shit, how’s Serafine gonna react when she hears about this?”
    “Hell, how’s anybody gonna react when they hear about this? Man, we’re in deep with everyone. First, we claim a mate the wrong way, and then we make her so upset that she’d rather run off than talk to us. We’re in trouble with everyone.”
    Nelson sank down on the bed. “I can’t believe we made her so unhappy that she decided to leave. Hell, I can’t believe we made her so unhappy that she ran off without even saying good-bye. We–we really failed with the whole mating thing.”
    “We need to bring her back. I–I can’t imagine living the rest of my life without her. I know things got off to a rocky start, but I never thought it would get this bad.”
    “We have to go after her,” Nelson said. “That’s all there is to it.”
    “But how? And how will we explain where she is in the meantime?”
    “We’ll—we’ll say she went back to Houston to get her stuff and return her apartment key. Plausible she woulda done that.”
    “They’ll be pissed at us for not goin’ with her.”
    “They been pissed at us ever since we got mated. We can’t seem to do nothin’ right around here lately, so we might as well let ’em think we screwed up again. Better to have ’em think we let her go off on her own rather than havin’ ’em think we drove her away.”
    Armand sighed. “You have a point. Guess that’s the best plan. So how do we find her?”
    “First thing is to trace her credit cards. That’ll let us know whether