When I Found You

“Great. Thanks.” Shannon said her goodbyes and headed back to her SUV with Darwin.

As Logan and Boomer walked back to where Ariana, Max and the others waited, all eyes were on him, but it was Ariana’s gaze he held. It surprised him that he felt a powerful tug of attraction despite his blinding headache. “The aircraft’s clear,” he announced, trying not to stare at her. “There was no sign of explosives on board. Not unexpected.”

Ariana glanced at Boomer, but held her position. “No, it’s not,” she agreed, her gaze lingering a moment longer on the dog. “You’ve taken the women into custody?”

Logan nodded, and just that slight movement made his head feel as if it was about to explode. “Yeah. They should be on their way to the division by now.” He glanced around, noting that Stewart and his car were gone, too. “What happened to the FSD?”

“He had more pressing matters to attend to.”

There was that hint of a smile again. Logan wished he was feeling better so he could’ve taken some time to get to know her. That wasn’t happening today, though. “Nice to meet you. Thank you for your cooperation,” he mumbled and started to move toward his vehicle.

“That’s it?” Ariana called after him. “Officer Brody usually stayed on site to discuss the incident with us.”

Logan turned back. He nearly winced from the sharp pain that cleaved through this head. “I’ll write up a report at the division. You’ll have a copy tomorrow.” Answering his phone when it vibrated, he trudged off with Boomer beside him.

* * *

ARIANA STOOD WITH the other members of her team and watched Logan’s retreating back. He was tall and fit, as would be expected for his job. The short-cropped black hair and the way he moved would have told her “cop” even if she didn’t already know it. She hadn’t expected to like him, but she did. He’d scored major points with her when he’d taken that shot at the FSD. Two other area airports were part of Angus’s responsibilities along with San Diego International. The average failure rate for the covert testing of the three was actually higher than the abysmal national average of 95 percent. And, Angus loved to criticize her.

Ariana liked the spirit Logan had displayed. Not many people would go toe-to-toe with a Transportation Security Administration director. Yet he appeared weary as he walked away. Uncharacteristic, from what she’d heard about him.

She felt a flutter in her belly, and this time it wasn’t caused by her unease with the dog trotting along beside him.

She hadn’t intended to eavesdrop on his telephone conversation, but since her attention was focused on him, she unintentionally overheard his side of it.

“Look, Becca, I’m sorry I left while you were sleeping this morning, but I can’t be with you 24/7. I have a job, for Pete’s sake! You’ve got to...”

He was too far for Ariana to hear anything else. She found herself unexpectedly—and unreasonably—annoyed at what sounded like the cop having walked out on his girlfriend. Or was she bothered by the fact that he had a girlfriend?

Ridiculous!

She might have found him attractive, with that rough and rugged, macho thing he had going on, but she wasn’t interested in him...or anyone. Her career came first. She’d been in her job for barely a year, and in the airport industry that was nothing. In addition, she’d always avoided relationships in the workplace. Logan might not be employed by the airport, but it was close enough. Also, based on what she’d heard, he was seeing someone.

“Well, that was an incredible waste of time and money.”

Ariana spun around to face Dave Langdon, one of the supervisors in her department. A former SDPD officer, he’d worked at the airport for over ten years, first as a security guard and the last four as a supervisor. Dave was one of the people who consistently made her feel like a newbie. Conversely, she’d questioned time and time again why Dave had been kept on as long as he had. He might have experience, but his work ethic was lacking and she couldn’t find a kinder phrase to describe him than “mean-spirited.” She knew he’d applied for her job, and it didn’t surprise her that he’d been passed over.

“Do you have a problem with the FAA protocols, Dave?” she retorted, referring to the Federal Aviation Administration.

“Nah. It’s just a lot of trouble for two drunken women. You know how the airport’s CEO and the board are all about keeping expenses down these days. This’ll cost us and the airline.”

“What would you have done differently?” Ariana asked, her voice cool and professional. It wasn’t her style to challenge an employee in front of others.

Dave had defied her authority before. It had never been overt enough for her to call him on it officially, but it had been an undercurrent since she’d been in her position. Now he was sounding a lot like FSD Stewart and doing it in front of two other members of her team, who stood silent and watching.

“It always has to be your way, doesn’t it? Those of us who’ve been on the job would do it differently.” He stalked off before she could respond.

And there it was again. That disdainful tone he used with the innuendo that he was better than she was, because he’d been a police officer. She didn’t think Dave had any way of knowing about her failure to get on the force because of her health condition, but he seemed to like dropping those little barbs. She’d worry about that later.

Seeing the outrage on Max’s face, she gave him a look that left no doubt that she didn’t want to talk about Dave. The other security officer, a young man she’d hired recently, was obviously uneasy with what he’d heard, if the pink tips of his ears and the fact that he was preoccupied with studying his shoes were indications. She couldn’t be concerned about his reaction either. Right now, she still had work to do.

Dave hadn’t been far off in his “waste of time and money” comment, she thought as she drove back to the terminal building with Max. She’d already squandered at least five hours of her own time getting the report writing and follow-up done. Considerable departmental resources had also been expended. Since the cuts, she didn’t have a lot of room in her budget.

She understood that as nonsensical as it might seem to have brought the plane back, the pilot had no real choice once a threat had been made, despite the considerable expense to the airline and the airport. She hoped the women had learned an important lesson.

It had been a shock, although not an unpleasant one, to learn that Officer Tom Brody was gone from the police department.

She wondered again how a guy like Brody had been able to get on the force in the first place.

Ariana’s thoughts veered back to Logan as she unlocked her office. She was glad that she wouldn’t have to see Brody again, although she wasn’t convinced that SDPD K-9 Unit captain Logan O’Connor would be easier to deal with, for entirely different reasons.

As much as Ariana tried to concentrate while she worked on her report, Logan kept creeping back into her thoughts. It was obvious that he knew what he was doing, and it would be difficult to find fault with him professionally from what she’d seen. And on a personal level? When Logan smiled, he was hard to resist. But what was all that she’d overheard about him sneaking out on his girlfriend in the middle of the night?

She was attracted to him, no question, but he was definitely off-limits.

With her mind wandering, Ariana lost track of where she’d been in her report to her boss. She had to finish it before she could go home. She refocused, and ten minutes later she clicked Send. The email, with her report attached, was on its way to Calvin Murdoch, the airport’s chief executive officer.

The final task of her day complete, she felt as if she’d crashed into a wall. She hated to think of the mood she’d be in tomorrow, if she didn’t get home and recharge.

CHAPTER TWO

ALL LOGAN WANTED to do was fall into bed and get some sleep. He didn’t care that it wasn’t even nine yet. As soon as he took the turn onto his street, he knew that wasn’t going to happen.

Becca’s red Mustang was parked in his driveway. As he got closer, he could see her sitting on the bottom step of his porch, legs crossed, elbows on her knees, her chin resting on her fisted hands.

Although she had a key to his place, she must have forgotten it.

She looked sad and forlorn. He couldn’t hold back the sigh, but thankfully it escaped before he’d gotten out of his SUV. As soon as he let Boomer jump out of the back, the dog bounded over to Becca, enthusiastically nuzzling and licking her. She shoved Boomer’s head away and wiped her face with the back of her hand.

Logan leaned against his truck and folded his arms across his chest. He’d figured if anyone could cheer Becca up, it would’ve been Boomer. Yet she just kept pushing him away. He resolved the impasse by climbing into her lap—no easy feat for an eighty-five-pound dog. Boomer whimpered and rested his head on Becca’s shoulder. Finally giving in, Becca wrapped her arms around the dog and buried her head in his glossy fur.

Almost instantaneously, her body convulsed with sobs.

Logan sighed again, and dropped down on the step, draping his arm around her.

“Men...are...horrid,” she managed between sniffles.

It was the same refrain Logan had been hearing for days now. He turned his head toward her. “Yes, we are. It’s a burden we have to bear.”

Becca jerked her head up, bumping his chin. Logan let out a muffled “ouch.”

“No, I didn’t mean you,” she protested.

He tested his jaw, and rubbed it to ease the discomfort. He’d always known she had a hard head, but this was the first time he’d felt the brunt of it physically. “I’m a man, aren’t I?”

She gave him a watery smile. “Brothers, especially good ones like you, don’t fall into that category.”

He was relieved to see the smile, as feeble as it might have been. It was the first he’d seen from her in days, since she’d broken up with that punk Winslow after she’d caught him cheating on her. Becca had done the right thing, but Logan hated to see her hurt. So much so, he was tempted to have a chat with Winslow—what kind of a name was Winslow anyway? “There are lots of women who might disagree with you,” he joked, hoping to keep her spirits up.

“What do they know?” she said, and her smile firmed.

Sleep was overrated, Logan decided. Becca had been his top priority since they’d lost their parents. Since then, it had been just him and his kid sister.

He wished he could’ve spared Becca the heartbreak of a first love gone wrong. As he couldn’t, the least he could do was support her and help her through it. “How about I throw some burgers on the grill and you make the salad?”

“It’s got to be nine o’clock by now,” Becca said with a hiccup.

“At least. Have you had dinner?”

She averted her gaze. “No.”

“Lunch?”

“I had a bowl of ice cream.”

Logan rose. “There you go. I’m making us dinner. I’ll even toss the salad myself.”

He held his hand out to her. When she placed hers into his, he tugged her to her feet, eliciting an annoyed whine from Boomer as he was dumped unceremoniously from her lap.

“C’mon,” he said and whistled for Boomer to follow.

* * *

DESPITE THE LATE NIGHT, Ariana was at work at seven the following morning, as usual. She didn’t get as much done the evening before as she’d hoped, because her thoughts kept drifting back to the events of the day and a tall, attractive cop. Although she could appreciate looks, they weren’t of highest importance on her list, so she didn’t understand why she couldn’t seem to stop thinking about Logan.

She was walking through the passenger concourse when her phone rang. Seeing Max’s name and number on the caller ID, she answered without slowing her pace. “What’s up?”

She could tell right away that there was a problem, from the tone of his voice.

“We had another security breach early this morning. A passenger wandered out of the secure international departure lounge into the domestic area.”

“How did that happen?” Ariana asked, switching her phone to her other ear.

“The door had been left propped open.”

“What? That can’t be right.”

“Sadly it is.”

“But that’s a secure door. Only about twenty of us can open it.” Ariana moved to the edge of the corridor and stopped. “Do we know who left the door open?”

“We checked the video footage. It was Dave Langdon. For whatever reason, he hung around the airport last night. He wasn’t on duty, but he didn’t go home after our incident yesterday. He must’ve slept in the office and gone out to the airfield early this morning. On his way back, he passed through from the international to the domestic area and left the door open. We have him on camera.”

“What was he doing on the airfield?”

“You’d have to ask him. My guess would be he went out to have a smoke. Can you believe it? All for the sake of saving himself a couple hundred yards of walking?”

Ariana did a slow turn to face the wall. “You’ve got to be joking. Even if he was stupid enough to do that, why didn’t the door alarm go off?” She knew it was programmed to do so.

“We’re trying to determine that.”

“Get me the video file. I want to see it as soon as possible. Check his restricted area identity card record for the entire evening, too, would you?”

“Sure. Why?”

“If he accessed any other secure areas while off duty, I want to know about it.”

“Okay.”

“And the passenger? What happened to him?”

“It seemed to be an honest mistake. We took him through security again and to his proper departure lounge. He’s probably boarding his flight now.”

“Was there anyone else impacted?” Ariana was hoping not, given the earliness of the hour. If other passengers were involved, in addition to inconveniencing them, it could have caused flight delays.

“Fortunately not.”

“All right. Let’s discuss it once I’ve had a chance to watch the video. And I want to see Dave, if he’s here.” This could be the last strike for Dave Langdon, if in fact he had left that door open. “Wait, are you in your office now?”

“I am.”

“And you’ve got the video file cued up?”

“Yeah.”

“I’m closer to your office than mine.” Max was in the terminal, near the screening areas, for rapid response if needed. Her space was in the administration section. “I’ll see you in a few minutes.”

Ariana holstered her phone. Since the day she’d started, she’d been trying to tighten security at the airport. If she’d learned one thing from her time working for a private security company before she’d joined San Diego International, policies and protocols had to be tight, effective and strictly adhered to. Not that her predecessor had been lax, but times had changed, and she’d been steadily making improvements to the extent her budget allowed. The TSA covert testing outcome had been a wake-up call. Yet every time she felt she took a step forward, there seemed to be something else that dragged her back. She bought two coffees on her way to Max’s office. Handing one to him as she entered, she placed the other on the corner of his desk. “Show me.”

Max held his chair out for her and started the video clip. Dave’s face wasn’t visible, but his movements, general body type and the clothing he wore—the same he’d had on that day—left little doubt that it was him. And if that wasn’t damning enough, Max confirmed that Dave had used his access card to open the door.

When the video segment ended, Ariana rose. Leaning against Max’s desk, she took a sip of her coffee. “Dave’s not stupid. He’d realize we’d know it was him. Does he want to get fired?”

Max shrugged. “I can’t answer that. I’ve never been able to figure the guy out.”

“Is he in the building?”

“Last time I checked before you got here, yeah.”

“Get him to my office in fifteen minutes. I need to talk to Human Resources first.”

* * *

IT WAS A crazy morning for Ariana. As much as she disliked Dave Langdon’s attitude, she hated firing people more. Human Resources had supported her decision and the deed was done. Dave had tried to deny that it was him. He’d claimed that he’d stayed at the airport overnight because he and his wife had had an argument that morning, and she’d kicked him out. He claimed that he’d slept in the office and hadn’t been walking around. That it must’ve been someone else who’d lifted his card and accessed the secure area.

He made the point that he’d changed, as she could see for herself, so the clothes he’d worn yesterday had been stuffed into his locker. He suggested someone could have taken them. When he’d realized that she wasn’t buying it, that she was really going to terminate him, he’d become belligerent and threatening. So much so that she reminded him she could have him escorted off airport property immediately. In the end, she persuaded him that wouldn’t be in his best interest, and allowed him to save face. She let him pack up his belongings, and Max walked him out.

The rest of the day hadn’t gone much better for Ariana. It seemed to be one niggling problem after another. It was well past six when she finally left.

Ariana let herself into her apartment, tossed her bag and keys on the hall table, and pulled the restraining band from her ponytail. She dragged her fingers through the length of her hair, slipped out of her shoes and placed them neatly inside the hall closet.

By the time she’d finished, her cat had sauntered over. She bent down and stroked her tortoiseshell-and-white coat. “Hey, Sabrina. How was your day? Better than mine, huh?” she murmured.

Taking her briefcase and placing it on the dining room table, she walked into the kitchen, pulled a Coke Zero out of the fridge and took a drink straight from the can. A second long drink went a considerable way to soothing her parched throat.

Soda can in hand, she walked back to the dining room and set up her laptop.

Her apartment had two bedrooms. The smaller one was configured as an office, but she seldom used it. If she had to work, which she did most nights, she preferred to do it with a view of the ocean, visible through the dining room window.

As her computer booted up, she made herself a large spinach salad for dinner and hunkered down with her laptop to catch up on her emails and various other mundane matters that she hadn’t gotten to during the day. If she had time, she wanted to review her risk map, to decide which area she would next target for improvement.

With a long-suffering meow, Sabrina threaded between her ankles a few times. Ariana couldn’t resist picking her up and taking comfort from cuddling her for a few minutes. When she placed Sabrina back on the ground, the cat leaped onto a chair, curled up and in minutes was snoring contentedly.

Ariana kept working for as long as she felt she was being productive, crawling into bed near midnight.

It seemed she’d just rested her head on the pillow when her alarm went off at five thirty. With bleary eyes and a sluggish body, she got ready for work and wished for a quieter day.

Thankfully, it turned out to be uneventful. Ariana did some follow-up on the incident involving the two drunken women and initiated the hiring process to find Dave’s replacement. On the plus side, she had the opportunity to tour a group of schoolchildren through the airport’s emergency operations center. By late afternoon, she had her second wind and was feeling energized rather than drained. She was engrossed in a proposal Max had presented to her for upgrading their security cameras in the parking garages. An enhanced video management system was her current focus.

The knock on her door frame caused her to jump, and she pressed a hand to her racing heart. Spinning her chair around, she felt her heart rate accelerate further.

Logan stood in the doorway, dressed in indigo jeans and a pale blue polo shirt. She glanced down quickly to see if Boomer was with him. Not seeing the dog, she shifted her gaze back to Logan. He had one arm causally braced against the jamb, the stance emphasizing the muscles in his arm and torso. His dark hair glistened under the harsh fluorescent lights of the corridor. He had a smile on his lips and in his eyes. And those intense blue eyes mesmerized her.

“I’m sorry to startle you,” he said, drawing her out of her reverie.

Realizing her hand was still on her chest, she lowered it. “Oh, it’s not your fault. I was reviewing a report and must’ve been absorbed in it.” She felt her lips curve in response to his smile.

“I was here debriefing with the officers on site,” Logan said. “We were discussing new operating procedures in view of what happened the day before yesterday. I wanted to fill you in and see if there were any new developments on your end.”

She shook her head. “No. We’ve closed the file on that incident. Have the two women been charged?”

“Oh, yeah!” He gave her that appealing smile. “So do you have a few minutes or do you need to get back to your report?”

She glanced at her watch.

“We can do it some other time,” he suggested. “If you’re busy right now.”

Ariana realized she didn’t want him to go, and it wasn’t just professional curiosity as to what the SDPD’s new procedures were. “No, that’s okay. I’m ready to call it a day. Come in.”

Logan dropped his arm and took a step forward, but paused, his eyes crinkling at the corners. “Since you’re calling it a day, why don’t we get out of here? I’ll buy you a coffee or, better yet, a drink. We could probably both use one.”

Ariana was about to agree. Then his conversation with his girlfriend, Becca, came to mind. She opened her mouth to decline.

“We can discuss the procedures,” he said quickly before she could respond, and cast his gaze around her small, sparsely furnished office. “But in a more comfortable environment. If you don’t already have plans, I’ll throw in dinner to sweeten the pot.”

There was that smile again. Ariana laughed. “No need for dinner, but okay to getting out of here.” It was going to be a business discussion, that’s all. She routinely had coffee or lunch with men in the course of her duties—her profession was male-dominated. Why would it be any different with Logan? Whether he had a girlfriend or not was irrelevant. The butterflies in her stomach aside, it was going to be nothing more than business. “Let’s go have a coffee,” she said.

CHAPTER THREE

BY THE TIME they reached Ariana’s car, Logan had somehow convinced her to have a drink with him instead. He suggested Buster’s Beach House Bar.

Ariana had never been there, but Logan must have frequented the place, if the number of people who said hello or had a quick word with him were any indication.

He motioned for her to precede him to the back of the room, and she slid into a corner booth. A waitress appeared almost before he sat down.

“Hey, Carly,” Logan greeted her.

“Good to see you, Jagger. The usual?” she asked and gave him a flirtatious smile. It made Ariana wonder about the relationship Logan and the waitress had. She felt guilty about her curiosity as soon as Carly turned an equally warm and welcoming smile on her. “And for you?”

Ariana found herself smiling back. “What’s his usual?”

“Corona, with a slice of lime, straight from the bottle.”

“I’ll have the same but with a glass. Thanks.”

“Sure thing,” Carly said, placing two cardboard coasters on the scarred wooden table.

“I was wrong,” Logan said after Carly left.

“Wrong about what?”

“I would’ve bet a month’s salary that you’d be a wine drinker. A white—smooth and well-chilled.”

Ariana laughed. “You’re not wrong. I’ve been known to have a glass of chardonnay or sauvignon blanc now and again. Working in the field that I do, beer has become an acquired taste. Hanging around so many men, I’ve learned to enjoy a frosty glass of Corona as much as a glass of wine. So, tell me, how’d you get the nickname Jagger?”