38
Today is the day.
For the past week, Rayna has continued to relax, but she has also been planning what to do with the River Shine Pack members with the help of Harley and a pack official he introduced her to. Harley has been spending his time working and planning their vacation, along with helping Rayna a bit here and there.
It's Wednesday, the day the two get to leave for their vacation.
It is currently 7:02 A.M., and Harley just woke Rayna up. He's already gotten ready and has retreated to his office to make some last minute arrangements. He only told her that she has to be ready to leave by 8 o'clock.
She quickly gets out of bed, rubbing her eyes. She yawns and stretches before heading into the shower.
They already have all of their bags packed. Harley helped her pack since he's been on trips more times than he can remember. He also bought her doubles of everything besides clothes (e.g. a new hairbrush, toothbrush and toothpaste, shampoo, body wash, conditioner, sketch book, etc.). Harley told her what climate she should be prepared for without giving much away. "Somewhat cold but not too cold." She packed eight outfits to be safe and a few other extra just-in-case things.
She washes her hair with shampoo and conditioner and uses her favorite body wash, feeling nice and clean. She then dries off and realizes that she didn't bring any clothes into the bathroom with her. She brushes and dries her hair, wraps a towel around her, and steps out of the bathroom.
Harley must still be in his office, as he isn't there, so she quickly walks around the bed to the closet. She gets dressed into a fresh pair of underwear, sweatpants, a sports bra, a tank top, and one of Harley's hoodies. Harley had told her to wear warm clothes that she can easily take off. She also puts on a pair of fluffy socks she got a while ago, which make her smile. Next, she puts on her favorite pair of tennis shoes, as they're comfortable to her.
She steps out of the closet right as Harley enters the bedroom. He turns to face her, and he instantly smiles.
"Mornin', baby," he says. They meet each other at the foot of the bed and hug each other. "I like your outfit. It makes you smell like me."
She smiles, slightly blushing, and hums.
"Let's go have breakfast," Harley suggests, giving Rayna a kiss on the top of her head.
*~*~*~*
After breakfast, the clock reads 7:36. Rayna heads back into the bedroom while Harley goes to the garage to check on their bags. All of their suitcases are already at the airport, as Harley is the Alpha King and obviously has a lot of money because of that meaning he gets special and convenient things, so just their carry-on's are left in Harley's truck.
She takes a seat in the bay window and just looks through the glass to the woods below.
Her hands start to feel sweaty, so she rubs them on her sweatpants. She ties her hair up using the hair-tie on her wrist, and she takes some deep breaths to slow her racing heart.
After a few minutes, Harley walks into the bedroom.
"Are you ready, baby?" he asks excitedly, walking over to her.
She nods, but keeps her eyes fixed on the window, and she isn't smiling like he is.
His smile falls. "Is something wrong?" he asks, concerned.
She shakes her head and turns towards him. "I'm sorry. I know I should be excited. I'm just nervous," she admits. Like she told him the first time they talked about this trip, she's only ever flown on a plane once, and that's when she was really young.
Harley is a bit relieved that it isn't anything about the vacation. They haven't even left yet, so the last thing he wants is her to not like it.
He sits down in the window next to her, but it's a lot more difficult for him to do so with his large size.
"We're flying privately, baby, so it'll just be you and me. I'll be there the entire time. Everything will be okay. The weather is perfect for flying, so there won't be any turbulence. The take off and landing might be a little scary for you, but it won't last long and, again, I will be there for you the entire time."
He holds out his hand. She takes it and squeezes it, giving him a soft smile.
"Thank you," she whispers.
He smiles back. "Anytime, baby. Do you feel better now?"
She nods.
Harley stands up. "We don't have to leave for a few more minutes, so is there anything you wanna do before then?"
She stands up, too, and giggles as she pushes him onto the bed.
His eyes widen as she crawls on top of him, but she quickly starts smothering him with kisses and cuddling him. He smiles softly, pushing away Hollow's much different thoughts. 'Those are for later.' He wraps his arms around her and pulls her tightly against his chest.
"I love you, Rayna," he tells her.
"I love you, too, Harley."
*~*~*~*
The couple had cuddled for a few minutes before they left for the airport at exactly 8 o'clock. It was about a twenty minute drive, and as they stepped out of Harley's truck, two guards quickly appear on either side of them, and Harley puts on a pair of sunglasses and throws his hood up, confusing Rayna.
They enter the airport, hand in hand with their bags rolling behind them and guards on either side.
Quickly, Harley is recognized. Rayna is taken aback as people start either taking pictures of them or recording from afar and also walking right up to them with cameras in their faces or asking them questions.
The guards push the paparazzi away.
Rayna obviously knew that with such a high rank comes fame, but she never really processed since meeting Harley that he's famous, which means she's now famous as well.
'Throw your hood up and don't say anything, baby,' Harley mind-links.
'You never prepared me for this,' she tells him.
'I know. I'm just used to it so it slipped my mind. I'm sorry, sweetheart.'
'It's okay . . .'
Rayna puts her hood on like told and then wraps her arm around Harley's, hiding behind him.
"Is this your mate?" one girl asks.
Harley's face remains expressionless, but he gives a slight nod.
"Yes," he replies.
Rayna blushes slightly, but they quickly enter a private section of the airport, where the guards split away from them and no one is there to pester them.
They go through a small security check before they walk outside. Rayna quickly spots the private jet they're heading to, and there are four people standing right next to it. They walk up to them.
"Rayna," Harley begins introducing, "this is my private pilot, Captain Luis Rodriguez. This is his wife, Camila, their son Jose, and their daughter, Margarita. They'll be flying and treating us on our flight. Everyone, meet my mate, Rayna."
Rayna feels a burning look from one of the family members, making her stand up tall. For some reason, she can't tell who it's from.
"It's nice to meet you," she greets with a strong tone.
They all greet her back, and she brushes off that odd feeling she got, as it was now gone. Harley starts speaking with the captain and Jose while Camila and Margarita step onto the plane, taking their bags with them. Rayna stays by Harley's side and stares off into space, watching the planes take off on other runways.
She's snapped back to reality when Harley starts nudging her onto the plane, and she takes a deep breath. She grabs the railing and walks up the steps.
Stepping inside the jet, she's left in awe. It definitely shows how much money Harley has. There's multiple visibly comfy chairs and also tables--she even sees a bed! 'Maybe this won't be too bad,' she thinks to herself.
Harley takes a seat, so Rayna sits next to him. She keeps her hood up and wraps herself into a ball, covering her face with her sweater paws.
"What are you doing, baby?" Harley asks.
"I'm a sweater ball," she whispers. He chuckles.
"C'mere, cutie," he coos, reaching his hands out to her. She giggles and crawls into his lap. He holds her to his chest and kisses the top of her head. "We have about fifteen minutes until we leave, and then you'll have to sit down and buckle up for a bit. This is gonna be a three hour long flight."
She nods and wraps her arms around him, burying her face in his neck.
"I love you," she mumbles.
He smiles and pulls her hood down, burying his face in her hair. "I love you, too."
*~*~*~*
When it was time for take off, Rayna took the seat next to Harley again, and they buckled themselves in. It was a bit scary, but it wasn't as bad as Rayna had thought it was gonna be, and just like promised, Harley was sitting next to her the entire time holding her hand.
She quickly looked out the window of the plane and admired the view of the clouds from above. She took a picture, and then started drawing it in her new sketchbook, altering it slightly to look even prettier. She wants to have an amazing memory of this vacation starting now.
She drew for the first two hours of the flight, and ended up falling asleep in Harley's lap after she finished her drawing.
Harley spent the flight working, as he decided he would in his spare time on this vacation, because he knew he'd be falling behind. He did let Rayna cuddle up to him and rest her head on his lap to sleep, though.
When Camila told Harley they'd be landing soon, he woke Rayna up.
"We're landing soon, baby," he tells her. She nods and sits up, rubbing her eyes with her sweater paws.
She looks out the window again, and she can see mountains in the distance below the clouds. Where she previously lived there were a few bluffs here and there, mainly used for human hiking as the werewolves got the forest, and a lot more for wolves around the castle, but these are mountains.
"Where are we?" Rayna asks.
"We're gonna be spending the week in Glacier National Park, baby," he tells her.
She turns her head towards him.
"Really?" she asks.
He nods, smiling. "I would've taken you to a more popular place outside of the country, but I don't think you're ready for long flights just yet. This place also has a secret section just for werewolves, where I got us a cabin."
Rayna crawls over the seat and on top of him.
"Thank you, thank you, thank you!" she repeats. He chuckles.
"You see, this is one of the things I love about you," he says. "You don't want me just for money. You're so grateful, and that means a lot to me."
She smiles brightly.
"Of course. Y- You saved me. I love you," she replies, giving him a peck on the lips.
"I know. I love you, too," he tells her before kissing her forehead. "Buckle up, baby."
She nods and sits down, buckling herself in.
"We're in a different time zone that's just one hour behind, so instead of it being noon it's around eleven," Harley explains. She nods.
They land, and they step off the plane and enter the airport. They throw their hoods up again and Harley puts on his sunglasses. Guards walk with them again as they exit the airport, but there were a lot more people coming up to them than last time.
Suddenly, Rayna gets yanked back by her hood, making her let out a loud yelp.
Her Queen Aura quickly goes up, causing everyone around her--including the guards, Harley, and all of the people surrounding them--to fall backwards. She stands there, still, breathing heavily as her throat and eyes sting. Harley is quickly back on his feet, growling at the person who grabbed her.
He walks up to the male who was closest and picks him up by his throat.
"How dare you grab my mate!" he growls in his Alpha Voice. Everyone in the room shakes with fear, even the guards.
"I- I- I -" he stutters, but he can't get much farther than that.
"You what?" Harley growls, tightening his grip until the boys face is turning red.
Rayna slowly walks up to him and places a hand on his arm. He turns to face her looking up at him with tears in her eyes. He quickly drops him and wraps his arms around his mate.
"I'm sorry, baby," he whispers.
"C- Can we go now?" she asks softly. He quickly nods.
"Yeah."
He takes her hand, and they're out of the airport in a minute. A black limo pulls up in front of them, and Harley ushers Rayna inside ahead of him.
"This limo is gonna take us to the park and then we'll grab a jeep from there, and our bags should be there just before us."
Rayna nods and holds his hand.
After a few minutes, trees appear on either side of the road, and they pass a sign that says "Glacier National Park". Rayna smiles brightly, making Harley smile as well.
After a few more minutes, they reach a large parking lot in front of a resort where the limo parks and lets them out.
The limo driver hands Harley a set of car keys, and they find the Jeep Harley had left there for them. They hop inside, and start driving to their cabin.
