Chapter 27

Les

God,this was killing him. He was doing his best to stay upbeat and make the last day amazing for his girl, but the ticking clock in his head could no longer be ignored and all he could see was the desolate wasteland his life would be when she'd gone.

Hearing her tell him that he'd granted her wishes too had been a balm on the wound in his heart, but his mind continued to whirl trying to form ideas on how to get her to stay, but he couldn't come up with any. It really killed him that this time, he knew she was leaving and still couldn't stop it.

They had just come from the bathroom with Rae-Rae chattering away about their plans for the day. Even as she slipped into Little space, he could see the dread in her gaze, and it hurt his heart.

He approached her and gathered her into his arms as his heart raced a mile a minute, "We'll be okay, Rae-Rae. We can figure something out, I'm sure."

Rae-Rae looked up at him with all the hope in the universe settled in her eyes and asked, "How?"

"Maybe we could try a long-distance relationship until we work something out. We can video call and talk over the phone. I still have plenty of vacation time squirreled away to visit. You can come here when you have opportunities. We could make it work."

"Yeah, maybe." She didn't sound as convinced as he'd hoped and honestly, he wasn't all that convinced either. He was a very hands-on Daddy. It would probably kill his spirit to be so far away, but for Rae-Rae, he was willing to try.

"Let's talk about it and see what happens," he suggested.

A small smile graced her face and when he looked into her eyes, that dread he'd seen before had lessened just a bit. They could figure this out. Les wouldn't accept anything less. Hell, if he needed to, he'd leave Rawhide Ranch and move to Texas for her. It didn't matter that the Ranch was the first place he'd ever felt at home. In reality, Rae-Rae was his home and he'd do anything to keep her.

They hadbreakfast in the cafeteria with the friends Rae-Rae had made in her time there joining them to eat and chat and say their goodbyes. They spent a bit of time in the pool just relaxing in the water and holding each other tight. They avoided speaking about the next day and, honestly, hardly spoke a word, content to just soak in the other's presence.

In the afternoon, Les took Rae-Rae back to their room where he made love to her nice and slow, looking her in the eyes the whole time so she'd see how much he loved her. They'd taken a bath and again soaked in the water as at the same time they soaked up each other.

That evening, he took her back to see the sun set over the mountains, the brilliant colors dancing over her and tinting her skin as he once again watched Rae-Rae instead of the sunset. This time, though, he noticed that she was doing quite a bit more looking at him than the view as well.

After the sun had set, they got some blankets and took them to the big outdoor movie screen, snuggling in to watch a movie under the stars. Les couldn't seem to let Rae-Rae go and held her through the entire movie. She didn't seem to mind in the slightest. When it was time to sleep, Les found it more and more difficult to put aside tomorrow.

He was dressing her in the pajamas he'd chosen, a cute onesie that was covered in sloths drinking coffee. On one side, there was embroidery that said I wouldn't be so slow if you'd let me finish my coffee.

"Let me take you to the airport tomorrow."

The words had escaped before he thought about it, but it felt right. There was no reason for her to take a cab when he had a perfectly working vehicle and he could use the drive to get just a bit more time.

Rae-Rae didn't resist. She nodded her head and said, "I'd like that."

The two climbed into bed and Les read a story for Rae-Rae. She'd fallen asleep halfway through, but he continued reading until the final word. Then, he tugged the covers over them and held his girl all night long. He didn't sleep a wink.

Raelynn

The day was upon them,and Raelynn really wanted to go as slow as possible. Part of her hoped she'd miss her flight and get to stay another day or two but that would just make it even harder to leave. She knew she needed to just get it over with. That morning as they packed her bags, Daddy had told her to call when she got there safely. He'd also made it clear that he wanted to try the long-distance relationship thing. Raelynn wasn't sure that would work for her since she was a very hands-on Little and needed her Daddy close. But she also knew that, in all the years they'd been separated, she'd never met anyone who could take Les' place as her partner or Daddy. A long-distance relationship with Les was better than any in-person relationship with someone else, so she'd agreed they should try.

Daddy had loaded her bags into the back of his truck and settled her in her seat. Once he'd buckled her in nice and secure, he rounded the hood, climbed in, buckled himself up and started the truck and their drive. It was silent for a while before Daddy spoke into the silence.

"This has been the best week of my life, Rae-Rae."

He reached over and took her hand, using his other hand to drive.

"Mine too, Daddy. Mine too."

"You know you're mine, right?" He glanced at her briefly before focusing back on the road. "I'll figure out a way to make it work. I promise you that."

Raelynn simply nodded, the lump in her throat too large to speak around. She didn't think he'd seen her but when he squeezed her hand, she knew he had.

They were silent for the rest of the drive until they pulled up to the drop-off lane at her terminal. Daddy parked the truck and came around to help her out. He lifted her down and hugged her tight, whispering in her ear, "I'll find a way. I won't lose you again, babygirl. You are the best thing that's ever been mine."

Raelynn smiled brightly at the lyric. Daddy had apparently studied up on Taylor's lyrics from her song, "Mine". Raelynn cupped his cheek and told him, "I love you, Daddy."

"I love you too, Rae-Rae."

Raelynn wished it was years ago, in a time when Daddy would still be able to walk her in and wait with her. It wasn't though, so Daddy just lifted her suitcase out of the truck, extended the handle so she could wheel it behind her, and handed her the carry-on bag. He placed one last kiss on her forehead before turning her toward the automatic doors, and the plane that would whisk her away.

She'd made it only a few steps before she turned and, leaving her bags where she'd stopped, she raced back to him, stood on her tippy toes and kissed him square on the lips. It didn't take but a moment for Les to take control of the kiss, devouring her as if she were his last meal.

When he finally pulled away, Raelynn was breathing heavily. She took a deep breath, lifted her gaze to his and said, "You're the best thing that's ever been mine, too." Then, she turned around, gathered up her bags and, sending one final wave over her shoulder, entered the airport.