Sitting in the restaurant beside Nate, she didn't feel any closer to him than she had before she nearly killed Cliff. She was strongly attracted to Nate and loved being around him but the pull to his wolf wasn't there. She prayed again that Cliff would be all right. 

"My husband thought it best to bring Alpha Draven into the investigation since Penelope is his Beta's wife," Nate's mother said across the table in front of Aiyana. "Draven is a good man and he recognized Penelope's voice immediately when he heard the recording. I don't know if he's arrested her yet, but he has started an investigation."

"That's good," Alpha Wayne said beside her. "What about her accomplice?"

"Alpha Draven didn't know him. He suspects he's a rogue Penelope hired. I think he'll be tried here."

"And if he's found guilty," Aiyana asked.

"He will never be in a position to kill anyone again," Luna Salma grimaced. "Enough about that. We need to talk about what you and Nate are going to do now. Do you realize you are the only living wolf queen and that you are technically ruler over one of the oldest packs in the world?"

"Um...no."

"Yes! I've been to Scotland before - beautiful country - although I do prefer Yellowstone. There's miles of land on which to roam and the pack there has a castle. There will probably be some resistance when you get there, but with your powers and the support of the Yellowstone pack, I don't think it will last long."

"I'm not going to Scotland."

"You have to, you are the queen!" Luna Salma said.

"No, I don't," Aiyana said at the same time her aunt beside her said, "No she doesn't." Aiyana squeezed her aunt's hand and continued. "They've ruled for a thousand years without a queen, they don't need me."

"But it's your birthright."

"I'm an American, a native American. My home is here. I want to be a doctor and that's what I will become."

Luna Salma shook her head, looking amused. "It's true, youth is wasted on the young. Don't you understand, you don't need to go to school anymore. You are a queen! Queens aren't doctors, they're leaders. Like I said, the Yellowstone pack will support you. You are Nate's mate after all. We'll train you for the position, then help you claim your throne when the time is right." 

Aiyana didn't want to get into an argument in public, and it was too soon to decide now anyway. "Thank you for the offer. I'll take it under consideration.

"There's nothing to consider!" Luna Salma exclaimed.

Nate reached across the table and grabbed his mother's hand. "Mom, let's just enjoy lunch. We can talk about this later, in private."

"Of course." Salma took a sip of her bottled, carbonated water, then blurted, "We can talk on the plane. It's en route as we speak. Since you're all done with classes, Aiyana, and your things are moved, I assume you are free to go now?"

Aiyana hadn't forgotten about the offer, but with everything else going on, she hadn't thought about it again either. "Um, yeah, but I can only stay a week. Will I be able to use the pack plane to fly back or do I need to buy a ticket?"

"You're family now dear. Of course you can use the plane."

----------------------

Caveat - she could use the plane if and when it were ever available, but it had been four days and it never was. She'd missed an extra week of work. Doc had been understanding so far but she wasn't going press her luck any further. She rolled over and shook the body next to her. "Nate?"

She'd always slept in a bed by herself. She'd quickly grown used to sharing Nate's large bed with him, but she wouldn't have chosen to do it. Nate's mom had just assumed they'd be sharing a room and Aiyana didn't want to cause any problems. She didn't look forward to explaining that part of her trip to her aunt. Her aunt would have never just assumed a visiting boy was going to sleep in her room, in fact, she would have forbidden it. At least she could honestly say nothing had happened. She'd told Nate she wanted to take it slow and he had been nothing but a gentleman. Then there was the image of Cliff on the ground gasping for air that came to her every time she started to get lost in Nate's kisses. She should have asked Cliff for his phone number so she could make sure he was okay.

She shook him harder. "Nate!"

His eyes popped open and he nearly hit her with a flailing arm. "What? Is something wrong? What's going on?"

She couldn't hold back a laugh. "Can you take me to the airport?"

"The airport?"

"Yes. I bought a ticket yesterday. We need to leave here by seven."

"But mom said you could use the plane today."

"She said that for the last four days and every day something has come up. I can't wait any more. I have to go to work. Vet school is expensive."

"I need to pack so I can go with you."

"You don't have a ticket silly, or a job or a place to stay or a car. You know where I live now. You can take your time and find a job and drive down when you're all packed."

He ran one hand through his hair, making the blond mess even messier. "That makes sense," he looked at her with a little pout. "I'd rather go with you though."

She leaned over and kissed his cheek. "I know."

He turned to kiss her back, but she ducked away, afraid she might have morning breath. "I'm going to take a quick shower and finish packing. Can you be ready when I'm done? I thought we could stop somewhere on the way and get breakfast, my treat."

"I'll buy you breakfast. I'll even pay for your ticket. My mother did promise you a flight home."

He was so generous. "Thank you, Nate. That means a lot to me."

"I know." He grabbed her an pulled her into a hug. She nuzzled her nose against his neck and took a deep breath of his scent. His skin always smelled wonderful in the morning.

Every time she stepped outside, the beauty that was Yellowstone wowed her all over again. She took in a deep breath of the cold, pine-scented air. Even though it was May and the flowers had been blooming for months at home, it was still below freezing in the mornings here. Nate took her bulging backpack and opened the door to his SUV which he'd warmed up while she was getting ready. She felt a little guilty about not saying goodbye to her hosts, but it wasn't her fault they were still in bed and she had to leave, and this way Salma couldn't find a way to make her stay longer.

"Nate, Aiyana, where are you going?"

Oh no, Salma was awake. "Don't tell.." Aiyana started but it was too late.

"I'm taking Aiyana to the airport," Nate yelled over the hood of his vehicle.

"What! You're leaving us?"

Aiyana turned to Salma with a smile. "Good morning Salma. Yeah, I need to get back to work. I would have told you but I thought you were still in bed."

"You spent money on a ticket? I told you the plane was available today."

"Your plane seems very busy and I didn't want to interfere with anything important." 

"Well, I'm glad I caught you. Nate, I need you to do something for me. Now don't worry Aiyana, it will only take a few minutes," Salma said when Aiyana opened her mouth to protest. "Why don't you come in out of the cold and wait."

"That's all right. It's a beautiful morning. I'll just walk around the yard for a bit. I'll be sitting for several hours on the plane."

"Suit yourself," Salma said.

She would. She started walking toward the front gate as she tapped the Uber app on her phone. Salma had just confirmed what Aiyana suspected. It wasn't her imagination, the woman was trying to keep her in Yellowstone. Why though? Was she trying to keep her safe, trying to get Aiyana fired, or did she think that if she talked about how wonderful Scotland was and how great it was to lead a pack like she had almost every night, Aiyana would eventually fall for it and give up vet school? The pack didn't live in the park, but owned land right next to it. They policed the park to make sure any rogues, which tended to flock to the park since it was public land, didn't cause trouble, but they couldn't restrict entry to anyone. They could, however, restrict entry to their own lands, and did, with a very large, guarded fence at the end of a private road. An Uber driver might have trouble finding it, but if she could get to the little convenience store on the main road about two miles away, it would be perfect. 

 The young wolf on guard duty met her in the middle of the road. "Good Morning Aiyana."

"Good morning. Anything interesting happen last night?"

"Nope."

"Great. I'm just going for a walk." She tried to go through the gate but the wolf stepped in front of her.

"Where's Nate?"

"The Luna asked him to do a chore. He'll catch up."

"You should wait for him."

"Why? I thought you said nothing happened last night."

"W-well, he's your mate and he might get upset and..."

"He can find me, easily."

"And there are bears."

"I'm a wolf, remember? I can run faster than a bear."

"A-and the Luna said..."

"She told you not to let me leave without Nate didn't she?"

The wolf nodded. He looked like he was about eighteen. She guessed he'd probably just started as a guard, but there was a bigger, meaner, older one in the guard booth. She could use her coercion on them so they would let her pass and make them lie about it if asked, but it wasn't right to make a pack member lie to their Luna. Could she trick them somehow so they wouldn't know she'd left and therefore wouldn't have to lie?

"I guess I'll just go back and wait then." She pretended to hear something, then turned her head. "What was that? Did you see that?" She released feelings of worry and certainty that she had seen something, pushing them toward the guard in the booth too.

"What did it look like?"

"I'm not sure. I just caught it out of the corner of my eye. I don't think it was a deer. Maybe a bear or a wolf. I'll just head back to the house. I'm sure you can stop whatever it was." She turned back toward the house thinking, don't look at me, don't look at me. After about ten steps she glanced carefully back over her shoulder. Both guards were now looking where she'd looked. She pushed her certainty that something was there and that she was heading toward the house at them as she turned around and walked back toward the open gate, trying to keep the gravel from crunching under her feet. 

Her heart was pounding. Could they hear it? The two men were standing next to the gate on the other side of the drive from her with their backs to her. All they had to do was turn just slightly and they'd see her. She held her breath as she walked through, and kept walking. As soon as there were trees that could shield her from the booth, she dove behind them. After a few seconds, she risked a glance through the limbs. The older guard was going back into the booth, shaking his head. She let out a relieved breath. It had worked!

She'd planned some extra minutes into her travel time to the airport, but walking two miles was going to take a while. After she had walked far enough that she was certain the guards couldn't see her, she took off her jacket, hooked the extra strap of her backpack across her chest and started jogging. 

After the first mile she started getting warm. By the second, her back was sweating beneath her backpack but her fingers were freezing. To her surprise and delight the little store was open - there were even two farm trucks parked on the small gravel lot in front of the store. The Uber driver wasn't due for a few more minutes, so she hurried inside to grab something for breakfast and to warm her hands. 

Her phone dinged just as she slid her debit card through the scanner. She pushed her pre-packaged pastry to the side so the next customer could pay and pulled out her phone, hoping it was a message from Nate. Nope. It was the Uber driver, delayed of course. She blinked back a tear as she slid her phone back into her pocket. How was she going to get home now? How long would Doc hold the job for her?

"Hey, do you need some help?"

She looked up into the blue eyes of a stranger at least as tall as Nate. He had dark brown curly hair, a beard in need of a trim, a rancher's jacket, and jeans that looked well-worn because they actually were and not because they'd been made to look that way. He was standing close enough to her that it was obvious he was a wolf. 

"No, I'm fine." 

"Are you sure, because distress waves are just rolling off of you."

"Distress waves?"

"Yeah," he shrugged. "I must be extra sensitive this morning. I've never felt them so strong."

She took a sip of her chocolate to giver her time to think. He was a stranger, but he was nice, and she wasn't completely defenseless. "I need a ride to the airport and my Uber driver may not get here in time."

"I can give you a ride."

Relief and hope washed through her. "Really?"

He blinked. "Wow. That's a powerful feeling you've got there. Yeah. Definitely. You're going to need to put on more clothes though - I have a bike. Do you have a sweater you could put on under your jacket and some warm gloves, maybe another pair of pants. It's pretty cold out there right now. A headband for your ears and a scarf would be helpful too."

"I do, just let me run into the bathroom and pull on the pants."

"Oh, and you should drink your chocolate now. I don't have any cup holders."

She laughed at his joke and hurried to the restroom in the back of the store. To her relief and consternation, he was still waiting when she emerged a few minutes later.

She took one last sip of her chocolate before tossing the cup in the trash. "I forgot to ask if you have a spare helmet." 

"I do." He led her past the now lone pickup to the side of the building and handed her a black helmet with a purple stripe from the bike parked there. "I brought one for my mate when I find her. I've been going around the country. I hit a lot of southern states when it was cooler, but I wanted to see Yellowstone in the spring before it got packed so I came here." He tapped the helmet she was dubiously gazing at. "Hey, I can tell you are nervous. I promise I don't mean you any harm."

She pulled up a smile and focused on him. She was nervous, but she could handle this. In all likelihood he was a nice guy. "It's very sweet that you thought to bring a helmet for your mate. I hope you find her." Her heart swelled as she thought of Nate running all the way down south to find her and how loving his wolf was when he first opened his eyes.

He gave her a strange look. "Are you always this emotional?"

"It's been a strange month. I've never ridden on a motorcycle before. Do I get on first?"

Riding a motorcycle was cold and noisy, but it had to be worse for the man since he was serving as her windbreak. He moved her hands off his waist and into his pockets a few minutes into the ride as if he could sense her fingers were starting to go numb - that really helped.

The airport was small - nothing at all like the airports she'd seen on T.V. There were a few buildings, a few small parking lots, and a single runway surrounded by a field of evergreens. She'd seen Wal-marts bigger than the terminal. Her driver found a spot right in front of the terminal. Once again, unlike what she'd seen on T.V., it was an actual parking spot and not just a drop-off lane.

She slid off the bike and managed to get the helmet off despite her stiff fingers. "Thank you," she said as she handed it to him. "I never caught your name."

"It's James."

She dug into her backpack and pulled out the last of her cash and handed it to him. "I'm Aiyana. Thank you so much, James. I'd offer to buy you a coffee or something to warm you up but I don't know if I can here and I need to get checked in."

"It's no problem. I'll just go to that little town a couple miles back."

She wanted to hug him, but would he find that weird? "Good luck on finding your mate."

He slid off his bike and offered his arms to her. She stepped into them gratefully. After riding for over an hour clinging to his back, hugging him felt perfectly reasonable. "Good luck on whatever is going on with you too. Maybe I can come by your pack sometime."

"Sure. I'm part of a University pack right now - the Alpha there is very welcoming to visitors.

"He banged his palm against his forehead. "I hadn't thought of visiting the university packs. I've been focusing on the big ones. My mate is probably at one of those."

He was such a sweet guy. Before she really thought about why she was doing it, she had her glove off and her fingers against his cheek. An image rushed to her immediately and she closed her eyes to better focus. "Your mate has short, curly blond hair, brown eyes, and she's wearing a purple scuba or bathing suit. Oh, she's surfing. Somewhere," Aiyana turned her head a little and pointed with her other hand, "that way. There's a sign. H-u-e-n-e-m-e."

She opened her eyes to see him staring down at her with his mouth opened. Abruptly, he pulled her into a tight hug, then kissed her cheek. "Thank you. Thank you. I knew there was something special about you. Here, let me have your phone. I'll put my number in. Text me back so I have yours. I'll let you know when I find her."

"Um, okay."

The airport was so small, she had plenty of time to check-in, go through security, and take off her extra clothes before boarding. Just before take-off, she finally replied to Nate's text that he'd sent sometime in the middle of the motorcycle ride asking where she was. On plane. Taking off. I'll text when I land. She shut off her phone before he could respond.