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Chapter Six
Bjørn grabbedthe last puppy to run it through the Super Dog moves. He held it under its front legs so its body hung for three seconds, turned the pup upside down, cradled it against him on its back like a baby, then placed it on the cold, damp towel. The puppy yipped the entire time, and Coco, the puppy’s mom, kept trying to push her way to save her baby.
“I’m not sure why this is supposed to make them smarter.” Bjørn took the puppy and set it in the whelping box with its siblings. “Theoretically, I get it. The military put me through intense training, so I understand how it can make you a stronger person, both physically and mentally. You said they are only six days old. Why put these puppies through this now? Why not wait until they’re older?”
Sadie sat back on her heels, her face lighting up with excitement. “It has something to do with the electrical synapses in the brain.”
She spoke wildly with her hands, making motions with her fingers like something bounced between each hand. He liked how animated she got when she talked. He’d have to think of things to ask so he could watch her more.
“During this rapid growth phase between day three and sixteen there’s like a crazy amount of activity happening in the brain. You know your brain has all these electrical connections, kind of like a web. Doing these exercises creates just enough stress to build more connections.” She stared into the box where the puppies nursed, a soft smile on her face. “It’s amazing, really. If you do more than three to five seconds for each exercise or do it more than once a day, it’s too much on the dog and breaks them somehow. Yet, just this circuit of moves that take less than a minute a pup makes dogs that are not only smarter but are more calm under stress with healthier immune systems.”
Bjørn knew all about the breaking point. Isn’t that what the military pushed those enlisted toward, especially the ones like him who wanted the crazy path of special ops? Constantly seeing just how far a soldier would let pain and mental anguish go before giving up. It was what had honed him into one of the best pilots in the Night Stalkers. He watched the puppies crawl on their mom. If it was so beneficial for dogs, had any research been done on people?
“Would something like this work on human babies?” He turned back to Sadie.
“I haven’t done a lot of research into it since I don’t have any babies.” She shrugged and pushed against the wooden box to stand. “From what I’ve read, we are a lot like the puppies. It’s why giving babies affection, talking to them, and playing with them is so important, even when they are only eating, sleeping, and pooping machines. It’s also why babies that are neglected have so many cognitive and social problems. The synapses weren’t properly connected.”
Her mouth pulled down and her forehead scrunched in concern, like she wanted to find all those poor babies and bring them to her kennel to take care of. Bjørn shook his head at his thoughts and stood. He didn’t have a clue what she was thinking. What he knew was that his brain had kind of frozen for a second while she talked about babies, and veered off course, wondering what her babies would look like.
“You’ll have to make a list for me.” He cleared his throat, needing to get his mind back on track.
“A list?” She headed toward the sink and washed her hands.
“Yeah, a list of how you do this Super Dog training.” He pumped soap on his own hands and stood next to her at the sink. “My brother, Gunnar, mushes. He’s training for the Yukon Quest and Iditarod this winter. I bet this would work for his dogs too.”
“Yeah, sure.” She shrugged and stuck her hands under the water. “I guess I can make a list.”
The humor in her voice didn’t escape him. Not everyone needed lists like he did, but it kept him organized, knowing what needed done next. He pushed her hands out of the way to rinse his off, splashing her when he finished. She laughed, tossed the towel at him, then quickly yanked her sleeves down over her wrists.
“So, speaking of lists.” He hung the towel on the hook in the wall, then leaned against the sink. “Do you have a plan for how you want to do this flight training?”
“Yeah, sure. Kind of.” She bit the side of her bottom lip, her eyes full of amusement. “Though, I don’t have anything formal written up. Nothing but a bunch of scribbles.”
“Let’s see what you’ve got.” He could always make an action plan later.
She led him back to the front room and sat on the couch, pulling the coffee table closer. The sunlight filtered through the window and made the red in her brown hair pop. She pushed her long ponytail over her shoulder, then shifted papers on the table. How long was it when she let it down? She glanced up at him and tipped her head to the couch next to her.
“I won’t bite. Unless you have another lemon scone hiding in your pocket.” Her head shook in mock seriousness. “If that’s the case, I can’t be held responsible for what might happen.”
“Duly noted. Don’t keep snacks with me unless I’m prepared to share.” He circled the table and sat down next to her. “And if I really want bonus points, I’m thinking peanut butter or lemon would work.”
“Smart man.” She whistled for Rowdy, her male, wire-haired, pointing griffon—and the puppies’ father—who had just pushed through the doggie door. “So, here’s my plan: I think we start with Rowdy here, so I only have to focus on one dog at a time. He’s already skilled at search and rescue. Getting him acclimated to flying will make him even more beneficial to the team.” She rubbed behind his ear with one hand and pointed at a map on the table with another. “I was studying the area this morning and picked spots that would be good tourist drops, that way you can get familiar with places you could advertise as destinations, either fly-in camping, backpacking, or day picnic-type trips.”
As he stared at her, a heat unfurled in his chest at her thoughtfulness. He hadn’t really thought about turning this into a benefit for his business, but she had. He figured it would accustom him to the land for SAR. That alone would be worth taking her out. Not only that, but she’d thought of a part of his business that he’d not slated for further down the line. He’d be able to increase his business a lot sooner than he had written on his timeline.
“Thanks, Sadie.” He turned his attention to the maps. “I wanted to offer those kinds of services, eventually. This will help me do it sooner than I planned.”
“You scratch my back. I scratch yours.” She shrugged. “I want us both to get something out of this, and not just that you have someone to talk to.”
He knew it was just a saying, but the phrase had his mind wandering. His gaze lingered on the shell of her ear that was the perfect size, and the sway of her hair as she leaned over the map. He hadn’t felt this much attraction to someone in a long time, and he definitely hadn’t been this distracted. Was it just the drive to cross the next thing off that stupid list of his? Was the intel his brain fired through him reliable? This development needed analysis before he fired his engines and launched a mission he wasn’t prepared for.
He tore his gaze from her and scooted toward the table. “So, where do you want to go first?”
“Well, there are a coup—”
The door opened with a howl. He’d have to ask her where they bought that bell. If he could install it without Gunnar knowing, it’d be a great joke. One Bjørn could catch on video. A man walked in, took off his sunglasses, and scanned the room.
Sadie did a double take. “Drew, what are you doing here? I thought your flight was this morning.”
