Chapter Seven
Sadie pulledup next to Bjørn’s helicopter at the far end of the Seward Airport chopper parking. Gray clouds hung low on the mountains across the bay, pushing down on her. Why couldn’t it be bright and sunny instead of gloomy? Maybe then she wouldn’t be so nervous, her body leaking cold sweat like a faucet, with the stress of the upcoming training. They weren’t even leaving the airport, but the thought of failing had kept her up all night long.
Rowdy sat in the passenger seat, looking out the window in expectation. His tail wagged as his head swiveled from side to side as he took in the action. Drew and his cameramen pulled things from their rental SUV, opening cases of equipment. She was half hoping they’d call to reschedule, say that something more exciting came up, like a herd of moose dancing the cha-cha in downtown Anchorage.
Sadie searched for Bjørn but didn’t see him. She still couldn’t believe he’d jumped in when he had. She hadn’t thought she could talk Denali into doing the show, and none of them would have forced her if she’d insisted. Then Bjørn’s suggestion had been enough to give Denali the breathing room she’d needed to realize just how important the opportunity was. Hopefully, Sadie’d find a way to thank Bjørn for his help.
“Come on, Rowdy.” Sadie rubbed behind the dog’s shaggy ear. “Let’s go on an adventure.”
He barked a cheerful response and barreled out her door the instant her feet hit the asphalt. He dashed to the crew, sniffing at each of them in greeting. Sadie shivered as the damp air hit her, and she zipped up her jacket and snagged her beanie from the dashboard. So much for looking nice for the camera. Bjørn jumped down from the chopper, and her dog made a fool of himself.
“Rowdy!” Bjørn slapped his knees, and Rowdy’s entire body wagged as he rushed to Bjørn. “How are you, buddy?”
Bjørn rubbed Rowdy’s side, and the dog’s tongue hung out of his mouth in complete bliss. The enthusiasm of the two eased the nerves that zinged along her skin from high-powered electric-fence level to shock-collar level. Reaching into a side pocket of his cargo pants, Bjørn pulled out a tennis ball. Her muscles loosened even more. Not only did he bring baked goods and coffee, but he armed himself with toys for the dog. Sadie shook her head. Did his generosity ever end, or was this all just for show?
“Look what I brought you.” Bjørn held the ball high, and Rowdy instantly sat. “Oh, good boy.” Bjørn chucked it far into the grass field while Rowdy’s body trembled in anticipation. “Go get it.”
Rowdy shot off, his legs blurring as he raced to the ball. Maybe Sadie should go running with him, get some of this energy out that was making her sweaty. Bjørn pushed his sunglasses up onto the top of his head as he strode up to her.
“You ready for this?” His face beamed with excitement, like a kid going to an amusement park.
She shook her head in the negative. “Yes?”
Bjørn chuckled. The low sound tumbled over her head and down her body, causing her to smile. Maybe she had nothing to worry about after all.
“I sense some hesitation in you.” Bjørn turned to reward Rowdy, who ran toward them.
“Yeah.” She motioned to the network’s people. The cameramen already filmed them, and she tensed. “My mind’s been telling me all night the reasons this isn’t a good idea.” She lowered her voice, not sure how well the camera would pick it up. “What if I’m not able to do this? What if the training fails or Rowdy freaks out?”
Bjørn stepped closer and placed his hand on her shoulder. He leaned in, his heat pushing more of the cold away. Confidence replaced his excited expression.
“You’ve got this.” He pitched his voice so only she could hear. “You’ve done amazing with Rowdy, but even if he freaks out a little, it doesn’t mean you’ve failed. It means you both have an opportunity to improve, to push yourselves. Just keep your head on and forget about the cameras.”
“Okay.” Her response stuck in her throat in a soft whisper, so she nodded.
“Okay.” Bjørn gave her shoulder a squeeze, then bent to take the ball from Rowdy as Drew stepped up.
“Morning,” Drew said with a lift of his head. “You ready for this?”
“Absolutely.” Sadie shoved her trembling hands in her pockets, and Bjørn shot her a smile. Drew didn’t need to know she was so nervous she hadn’t been able to eat a thing.
“Great. What I’d like you to do today is just talk me through what it is you’re planning, like I’m clueless.” Drew motioned to the cameramen following Rowdy as he raced back. “You remember Bo and Craig, right?”
Sure, if her brain wasn’t stalled out, she probably would’ve remembered their names. She gave a tight smile at the men and held her hand up in a wave.
“They’re just going to keep rolling the entire time. Try to ignore them, unless they ask a question or tell you to do something.” Drew planted his legs wide and hung his arms next to him like he didn’t have a care in the world. “Think of me as someone you’re training. There’s no pressure here. I’ll look through the feed before I send it in and cut anything too embarrassing.”
“Is that something you normally do?”
“No, but I want to be a man of my word and not give you all any reason to doubt this will be a success.” Drew shrugged, but Sadie could tell their trust was important to him.
“Why are you doing this?” Curiosity had branded her since he’d shown back up at the kennel. “Aren’t you supposed to be off to the wilds of the world, filming the next adventure? I mean, why were you here in the first place? This kind of show isn’t your normal thing.”
Drew stared after the dog rolling in the grass. He heaved a loud sigh, then turned his attention to her.
“I never expected my show to get as big as it did. It was just supposed to be a way to save up the funding I needed to do what I really want.” He shoved his hands in his front pockets and blew out a laugh. “It kind of took over … everything. It wasn’t until I was in the middle of the jungle in South America, so sick I couldn’t move, that I finally had a wake-up call. The adventure had gotten old, and my dream finally pushed its way back to the surface.”
“What dream?” Sadie asked, a needle of doubt pricking her brain.