Chapter 11 #2
Their eyes met and held. Which made it really easy to see that she got the point, and it wasn’t solely specific to dog training.
She gave a tiny nod that was barely perceptible, but he saw it. He saw a lot of things. First and foremost, that Jacob could jump in a lake with his warnings.
This was real and was happening.
They spent another hour working on various commands, Noah using every excuse to adjust her form, which doubled as its own secret language.
“Ready to try something more challenging?” he asked, already planning their next sequence.
Their next date. The next year as she earned her certification and became an SAR specialist. They could work together.
They could travel places together so he could write articles.
Be one of those nauseating couples who are so in love that people don’t want to be around them.
The whole thing unfolded in his head so easily that he couldn’t stop imagining it.
Sabrina’s answering grin held a wild edge that called to him. “Bring it, Colton. We can handle anything you throw at us.”
However, by the beginning of the third hour, Sabrina started to regret her flippant proposition that she could handle whatever Noah put on her plate. The guy didn’t have an Off switch.
Normally, she’d be all over it, especially something like this SAR thing with such high stakes, which she really wanted to get right.
But everything had ratcheted up to a whole other level of intense, thanks to the subtext Noah had dropped into the mix.
This wasn’t merely SAR training. She and Ripley were bonding. Learning to trust each other. They were building a partnership—a permanent one.
Noah guided them through basic obedience work, each exercise building on the last. They practiced sits, stays, heels—what Noah called their foundation.
He kept throwing around these twenty-dollar words that must be second nature to him.
But she’d never done anything like this, something that required her to do more, be more and, above all, consider the long term.
Not to mention that nebulous concept of trust. There was some fine print that she’d totally missed in all her research and video watching.
But despite all the stuff going on inside her, the sheer overwhelm of the responsibility and commitment required for this SAR dog partnership business, it was going well. Really well. Ripley responded to Sabrina’s commands like they’d been working together for years. It was something else.
That other thing jockeying for position in her chest was pride. In herself. In Ripley. And, yeah, in Noah too. Because he’d made this happen. He’d seen the potential and then put in the work to push both dog and woman to this place.
If she didn’t already have a thing for him, that would have done it.
Also, no one had told her how sexy it was to watch a competent guy in his element. It was very distracting. How she’d retained a word of what the man said, she’d never know.
“The most important command is the emergency recall,” Noah explained, setting up a longer distance exercise. “When you call your dog off a track, they have to respond instantly. Lives could depend on it.”
His hands settled briefly on her shoulders as he positioned her, still with the same casual familiarity, as if he’d been doing it for ages.
“Like if the terrain suddenly becomes dangerous?” she asked, leaning into his touch because this easy intimacy they’d developed worked for her.
“Exactly.” Noah’s voice got so animated when he explained things. It was adorable. “Natural hazards, human threats—SAR work isn’t always safe. Your dog has to trust your judgment completely.”
There was that word again. Trust. The concept made her chest do funny things—that subtext again. He was doing it on purpose, calling her out, making her think about how little she trusted anyone except herself.
It was doing a number on her.
Especially after the way Noah had handled her intensity that morning. He’d been…perfect. He hadn’t tried to change her or rein her in. Just accepted her exactly as she was. Even when she’d completely overreacted, which she could admit now.
Finally, a guy who got it.
But she kept waiting for the other shoe to drop. For this perfect guy to turn out to be not so perfect—just like all of the other ones who had zero staying power.
Maybe if she learned to trust her partnership with Ripley, she could figure out how to do it with a guy. Eventually.
“Show me,” she said, thrilled to have an excuse to segueing into her new favorite activity, watching Noah do anything.
Four hours passed like four minutes. Sabrina’s muscles burned from running Ripley through recall exercises, but dang if she wasn’t nailing every single one. She had this. They had this. Noah made it feel less like work and more like the best kind of game—one she was absolutely crushing.
Who knew having a hot guy for a trainer could be this much fun? And that was the thing about Noah. He made everything fun. It was part of his charm.
“You’re both picking this up faster than anyone I’ve ever trained.” Noah’s praise sent a shower of sparks through her chest.
It was nearly miraculous how he actually appreciated her drive instead of being threatened by it. She couldn’t get over how perfectly suited they were for each other. It was like the universe figured she needed a break from the usual guys and dropped a whole different species of male in her lap.
“Ready for something new?” he asked.
“Always.”
“This one’s about scent discrimination.” He pulled what looked like small canvas pouches from his pack. “SAR dogs need to learn to identify specific scents and ignore others. Even the most tempting ones.”
She watched him demonstrate with Dancer, admiring the way his shoulders moved as he planted the scent articles. Dang, this guy was crafted finer than anyone she’d ever met. As if her exact specifications in a perfect male had been plucked from her subconscious.
“The real trick is teaching them to stay focused when there are distractions,” Noah explained, laying out what looked like beef jerky near one of the pouches. “Most dogs would go straight for the food, but watch this.”
Dancer moved through the course with laser focus, ignoring the treats to indicate the proper scent article.
The quiet pride in Noah’s voice as he praised his partner made something squeeze in Sabrina’s chest. They had the bond she needed to replicate with Ripley.
It seemed nearly impossible to imagine being at that place.
Her—the woman who spent twenty-four seven making sure everyone knew she could do it all herself.
“That’s incredible,” she said, meaning it. “How long did it take to get to that level?”
“Months of work.” He grinned. “But the bond you build during training? Worth every second. Nothing better than having someone you trust completely at your side.”
“Ripley’s turn?” She needed to move, to do something besides think about the weight of his words. “Let’s see if we can match that focus.”
“Start her about twenty yards back.” He positioned the scent articles differently. “Remember, you’re her anchor point. She’ll take her cues from your energy.”
To her surprise, Ripley worked the scent problem perfectly, bypassing the food to indicate the proper article. Pride bloomed in Sabrina’s chest, fierce and unexpected.
“See?” Noah’s hands settled on her shoulders again, thumbs working the knots she hadn’t realized had formed. “You’re a natural at this. At all of it.”
She nearly groaned in pure bliss.
How did he know the right things to say and do?
It was like he could read everything about her written on her skin or something.
The idea of being that transparent sent a tiny warning flicker through her brain, but his fingers felt too good to pull away.
Everything about him felt too good. The way he touched her, the way he looked at her, the way he seemed to actually see her.
She couldn’t figure out why this was a problem. But it might be soon enough, as they inevitably drifted apart.
“I have excellent taste in teachers,” she said with a laugh, because that at least was true.
“You have excellent everything.” His voice dropped lower, sending shivers down her spine that had nothing to do with the January cold. “I’ve never met anyone like you, Sabrina.”
Her pulse fluttered at his pretty words. But this was just Noah being Noah—intense about everything, even her.
“Flatterer.” She leaned back against his chest, savoring his warmth. “Trying to make sure I come back for more training?”
“Trying to make sure you know exactly how amazing you are.” His lips brushed her temple.
When this thing between them fizzled out—which it surely would, given how hot and fast they’d burned from the start—she’d really miss this way he had about him. How good he made her feel.
She planned to savor it all for however long the fun lasted.
“Keep telling me and maybe it’ll sink in,” she told him and stepped back. “I have plans tonight. Is this a good place to stop?”
“Yeah, it can be. I was hoping to take you to dinner though.” Noah didn’t hide his disappointment. Yet another odd aspect of him that she couldn’t get used to. He never pretended or pulled punches.
Which was exactly why they worked. Why it was different from all those other relationships that had crashed and burned when guys couldn’t handle her full-throttle approach to life. He’d tell her if aspects of her personality bothered him or if he was getting tired of her.
That was the great thing about Noah. They were on the same page. They were both having fun while it lasted.
“Sorry, I promised my mom I would drive over to visit. She’s in Durango,” Sabrina explained. “I usually spend the night.”
Noah’s grin widened. “That’s an acceptable excuse for ditching me. Call me tomorrow night so we can talk until dawn again.”
“It’s a date.”
Her own smile didn’t fade as she hightailed it to her vehicle so she could get home to do the umpteen things required to travel with a dog.
How had she gotten so lucky as to meet a great guy who was happy spending time with her?
No agenda, no pressure, and he seemed to really get her independent streak.
Maybe Noah Colton had more in common with a unicorn than she’d expected.