Ok so this was a story idea suggested to me by HoratiosGirl101. She gave me the general idea and most of the character names and her idea for the beginning of the story and I just ran with it. I've kept most of the general storyline the same from what she gave me but I tweaked it with a little of my own creativity. For example the character Calleigh Anne, I kept her name as Calleigh Anne but I gave her the nickname Carli. I also kept Arianna as the younger sister but it's a three year age difference instead of one year. There are a few other little things I also changed from the story idea HoratiosGirl101 gave me and I made up some of the stuff myself. I did keep the fact that Grissom is still the supervisor for the Las Vegas Crime Lab, because this story is supposed to be set at the end of season eight and Grissom wouldn't be working for LVPD anymore, but alas I miss Grissom so he gets to be in the story. Anyways I hope you enjoy this story. I know I really enjoyed writing it. It was a nice break from the stuff I've been working on.

And in case you're wondering this story does not coincide with my series "The Intern" with Jessica and Ryan. But I did put Jessica Caine in this story and kept a few things the same, like her past and Ryan and Jessica's relationship and her starting out as his intern. There are things in this story that are very different from my Intern series, because I already had a whole batch of ideas cooked up for that and I want to keep it that way. And I kind of missed writing about Jessica because she's my brain child that I conjured up. That and the fact that I kept making Horatio mention her and I decided it was easier just to keep her. But don't worry, this story is really all about Horatio. Jessica's just kind of there because I want her there, and I thought of a few really funny situations that would only work if Jessica was in the story. And if you've read my series "The Intern" Jessica is not pregnant is this in story.

Sorry this was a long winded author's note, I felt the need to explain to avoid confusion. Now sit back and relax and enjoy the show!

Peace Out!~ KC

Airport

Horatio Caine waited by the terminal exit. He was receiving a new transfer from the Las Vegas Crime Lab and her plane was supposed to arrive at 6:30pm. It was now 9:30pm and he was exhausted after a long day of investigating two murders, one being a double homicide, and now he was getting irritable because the transfer's flight had been delayed. To top it off he had pulled three double shifts that week alone all because he was short handed in staff. Horatio just wanted to go home and spend time with his son, Kyle Harmon, who was visiting while he was stateside.

Horatio's thoughts were interrupted by his phone vibrating. He pulled it out to find a text from his sister-in-law. 'Hey if you're not doing anything tomorrow how would you like to go fishing with Ray Jr. and me? We haven't seen you in awhile and it would be great to spend some time with you.' Horatio's heart swelled. 'I would love to go. Luckily I have the day off tomorrow and I don't have to worry about getting this new recruit settled in until Monday.' A few moments later Horatio's phone rang again. 'Great! We'll see you then!'

Horatio sighed and put his phone away. His heart ached at the thought of Yelina and the chance he had missed. Years before Yelina had married Horatio's brother, Raymond, Horatio had fallen in love with her. He had chickened out though and Raymond swung in and captured Yelina's heart. Horatio had tried for years after his brother's supposed death to tell her how he felt. Now could be his chance to tell her how he really felt.

An announcement over the intercom that the flight from Las Vegas had finally arrived interrupted his thoughts again. Horatio groaned as he stood from the chair he had been inhabiting for almost four hours. His body ached and he stretched to get the kinks out of his spine. He wasn't as young as he used to be and he was getting on in years. Horatio knew he needed to start taking it easy on the job and try to send out younger investigators out in the field and stay in the lab more often, but he couldn't. Horatio knew the victims needed him more than he needed rest and he wasn't going to give up just because some doctor told him his knees were getting bad from all the running he did in the field.

Horatio stood and waited for the woman he was supposed to be greeting. Arianna Harrington was her name. Horatio remembered she had long, straight brown hair and hazel eyes from the picture Gil Grissom had sent him. The only problem was that that described half the women on this flight. He stopped a few and asked if they were Arianna but received the same disappointing answer every time. He knew he should have brought the picture with him, which would have made this job easier. A small hand tugging on his jacket drew his attention away from the crowd.

Horatio looked down to see a small blonde, curly haired girl looking up at him. She had emerald green eyes that had tears forming in the corner. Horatio knelt down to the small child's level and looked at her with a concerned expression.

"Hello sweetheart, are you lost?" he asked her. The little girl nodded her head. "Alright, why don't you tell me your name?"

"Carli, Carli Anne Wolfe" the little girl said. Horatio was taken aback for a moment at the last name. He knew someone with the last name Wolfe but it wasn't possible because as best Horatio knew Ryan's only family was his off the wall mother.

"Carli, that's a beautiful name." Horatio said with a smile, "Why don't we go look for your mom?" The small child nodded her head as tears began to slowly stream down her face.

Horatio lifted the small child into his arms and stood up. He smiled at her and stroked her cheek. "You know Carli when I have a hard time finding someone I try standing up tall and looking around the room. You know how we can do that?" Carli shook her head and continued to stare at him. Horatio smiled, "Like this" he said as he lifted the small child onto his shoulders. Carli couldn't help but chuckle and took hold of Horatio's red hair.

Horatio walked around the terminal a few feet, knowing the child's mother couldn't be too far away. "Do you see her?" he asked Carli.

"No" she responded quietly.

"Well then we'll just have to keep looking until we do."

Arianna stepped off the terminal. She was exhausted. Her flight had been delayed for two hours because of engine trouble and her small daughter, Calleigh Anne, was tired and irritable. Arianna didn't want to make the transfer to Miami, but her supervisor had given her almost no choice. Grissom said she could either transfer or try and find a new job at another police department. The Las Vegas Crime Lab had undergone some major budget cuts and Ickle had told Grissom he needed to cut some dead weight in order to keep the Crime Lab afloat. Unfortunately for Arianna that meant her. She was the only CSI that was still level one. But Grissom couldn't just let her go. He knew Arianna was an amazing investigator and was an incredibly caring and compassionate person. Grissom had called around to a few crime labs where he had contacts and tried to find Arianna another job before he cut her loose. Luckily he had gotten a hit in Miami. Arianna wasn't exactly pleased about the move to Miami, but she needed a way to provide for her young daughter, and at almost fifty she knew no one would have jumped on the chance to hire her as quickly as the Miami Lieutenant had.

Arianna stopped and looked around. Grissom wasn't able to provide her with a picture of the Lieutenant but had told her he had red hair, blue eyes, six feet tall, and was a few years older than her. She couldn't even remember his name now. She felt helplessly lost.

Arianna sighed and tried to keep her eyes open. In Vegas it would have been almost eight o'clock, which normally wouldn't have been a problem for her except that Grissom had given her four days of paid vacation time off in order to try and switch over her sleeping schedule, since she would now be working the day shift. Now that she was on a "normal" sleep pattern Arianna was tired and ready to go to bed. The Lieutenant was to drive her to her hotel and her plan was to crash as soon as possible.

"Come on Carli," Arianna said to her daughter, "Let's find Waldo." She turned to look at the space previously occupied by her young daughter and found nothing. Immediately her heart started to race and her mind began to panic. She knew as an investigator she needed to remain calm, but as a mother she wanted to freak the hell out. If someone had stolen her baby she didn't know what would happen. The court might take her back and place her back into foster care. Arianna hadn't even adopted Calleigh Anne for a year now. They would take her and let someone else have her baby.

"Carli!" Arianna cried out, "Carli Anne where are you!" She grabbed her bags and began pushing her way through the crowd. Her heart was thudding painfully in her chest and her eyes burned. She needed to find a security guard, she could remember that much. The problem was it seemed they had all gone on break at the same time. Arianna couldn't find an airport employee anywhere. "CARLI!" she screamed one last time.

"Mommy!" Arianna turned to see her daughter hovering high above the crowd. She ran towards where her daughter towered and watched as she was lifted and set on the ground. Arianna pulled her daughter into her arms and held her close.

"Oh god Carli Anne, I thought I lost you!" she almost cried. "Where did you go?"

"I wanted to play hide and seek." Her young daughter whispered, "But then you didn't follow me. I got scared and that man helped me."

Arianna pulled her daughter back and held her shoulders in a tight grasp. "Don't you ever do that again! I thought someone had taken you!"

Carli began to cry softly and looked at her mother with her large green eyes. "I'm sorry Mommy."

Arianna felt her heart break and she pulled her daughter back into her arms. "It's ok, I'm just glad you're safe."

Arianna glanced at the man that had been carrying her daughter before she buried her face back into Carli's soft curls. "Thank you sir, I'm not normally like this. I've just been under a lot of stress lately because I lost my job and now I have to live with my crazy sister."

"That's quite alright ma'am." He said, "We never plan on these things happening. We all make mistakes, but then we get over it and move on with our lives. I'm glad you're back together."
"Thank you so much again!" Arianna said, "You're a lifesaver!"

He chuckled as he turned away. "That's just my job." He walked away, leaving Arianna alone with her daughter again.

Arianna carried Carli over to a set of chairs and set her down. "Wait here while I get our stuff. Don't move!" Carli nodded her head quickly and watched her mother go over to the baggage claim carousel and grabbed their suitcases. She returned shortly and sat next to Carli.

"Carli, how did you know to ask for help?" she asked her daughter as she pulled her onto her lap.

"You always told me that if I ever needed help the police would help me." Carli explained.

Arianna looked at her daughter surprised. "What makes you think he was a cop?"

"His badge."

Arianna thought it over for a second and tried to remember what the man had looked like. He was tall, older, with….red hair.

"Oh my god Carli," she exclaimed, "We need to find him again!"

"Why?" Carli whined as her mother set her on her feet.

"Because I think that's the man that we're supposed to find."

Horatio walked out to his car annoyed. He hadn't found the woman and he was ready to give up. He would just call Grissom in the morning and ask if the new transfer had actually gotten on the plane. Horatio picked up the case file and flipped through the pages Grissom had faxed him. He stopped when he got to the transfer's personal file. He stared at the picture and felt his heart thud loudly. He looked over her personal information and felt his palms grow sweaty. He threw the file back into his car and turned and ran back into the airport. Why hadn't Grissom mentioned she had a daughter?

Horatio ran through the crowd, straining his neck and searching the crowd. His eyes hurt and his head pounded. How could he have been so stupid? Horatio stopped and looked around him. He sighed and rubbed his eyes. "How stupid" he muttered. He turned and walked back towards the exit. He couldn't believe he had screwed up so badly.

"Mister!" he heard a small voice yell, "Mister Cop, wait!"

Horatio turned to see the young Carli running towards him. She was wearing an oversized Las Vegas Police Department baseball cap with a balloon attached to it. The balloon hovered six feet above her small body.

"Carli," Horatio said, scooping the young girl into his arms, "Where's your mom?"

Carli turned and pointed and Horatio watched as the mother came into view. Horatio sighed contently when he recognized the woman from her picture in her case file. He walked towards the woman and extended his hand.

"I'm terribly sorry," Horatio said, "I can't believe I missed you like that." The woman grasped his hand and shook it. "It's alright, I made the same mistake." She said with a smile. "But like a wise man once told me ten minutes ago we move on with our lives."

Horatio smiled at her. "Shall we start over?"

"Yes, please, I don't want you thinking I'm some crazy irresponsible mother."

"Lieutenant Horatio Caine, Miami Dade Crime Lab" Horatio said, extending his hand again.

"CSI Arianna Wolfe, Las Vegas Crime Lab…I guess Miami Dade now."

Horatio looked at her confused as they began to walk out of the airport. "Wolfe?"

"Yes, my file probably still says Harrington." Arianna explained, "I divorced my husband eight months ago after he told me I was too irrational for him."

"What do you mean?" Horatio inquired, placing her suitcases in the truck of his car.

"He didn't agree with my choice to adopt Calleigh Anne here. I worked her case and I kind of got too attached."

"How so?"

"Her parents were murdered and I was the head CSI on the case. It was my test for level two placement and I worked practically around the clock to finish that case. I spent a lot of time with Calleigh Anne and I got really attached to her. I gave her my number and told her if she ever needed me to call me. Well one night she called me from her foster care parent's house and told me her new father had beat her and touched her in bad places."

"You don't mean-"

"Unfortunately I do." Arianna said as they climbed into Horatio's car. "Carli was molested by her foster father five times in the first week she was there. I had her removed from the family and took her in myself. After two months of fostering her I adopted her. My husband was furious with me because I didn't consult him on any of this. So I packed my bags, moved out, and filed for a divorce. Unfortunately the only agreement we could come to was I got Calleigh Anne and he got everything else, including the house and my car. So I became a single parent trying to make enough money to support my child and pay for constant babysitters and nannies. I started riding the bus to work and we lived in a terrible neighborhood. I was late a lot because if I didn't catch the bus at just the right time I had to wait for the next one. Grissom eventually demoted me from level two to level one and said I would have to retest. He wasn't pleased with my decision to adopt Calleigh Anne, too. He said children just get in the way of your career, which I guess he's right but I fell in love with little Calleigh Anne. When the budget cuts came through I was the obvious choice to get rid of. I'm just thankful that Grissom found somewhere for me to go, even if it does mean moving in with my crazy sister for a few months."

"If you don't mind me asking," Horatio said, "Do you happen to know a Ryan Wolfe?"

Arianna thought it over and shook her head. "Nope, none that I can think of."

"What about an Amanda Wolfe?"

Arianna groaned and rubbed her eyes. "I don't think I even want to know how you know my sister. But yes, Amanda Wolfe is my older sister, fucking nutcase if you ask me. Glad she never reproduced, don't need anymore of her running around."

Horatio sighed and thought over his options. He knew would be best if he didn't say anything.

Horatio pulled into the parking lot of the hotel. He climbed out and walked in with Arianna to check in.

"You know I think I can handle walking into a hotel by myself." She commented, lifting her sleeping daughter into her arms, "I am from Vegas after all."

"I'd rather be safe than sorry." Horatio said, "Miami's a bit different than Vegas."

They walked up to the front desk of the cheap hotel. "Hello, Arianna Wolfe checking in." Arianna said as she dug through her purse in search of her wallet. Horatio took Carli from her in hopes of helping.

"Oh Ms. Wolfe, I'm sorry but we've already given your room away." The young male clerk said.

Arianna looked at him with an angry expression. "Excuse me, you gave away my room?"

"Well yes, you didn't show up at seven like you said you would and when we tried to call you to ask if you were still coming you never answered your phone or returned our calls. So we assumed you were a no-show and gave your room to another guest."

"Well where am I suppose to sleep then?" Arianna exclaimed, pulling Carli back into her arms, "It's not like I can just drop a hundred bucks on a nicer hotel!"

"I'm sorry Ms. Wolfe, but there's nothing we can do." The clerk said, clearly annoyed, "Better answer your phone next time."

"I was on a plane!" Arianna yelled, "Where's your supervisor? I want to have a word with him."

"My dad's gone for the night." The clerk said, "You can call him back in the morning though."

Arianna grunted and turned and stormed out of the hotel. Horatio was hot on her trail.

Arianna stopped next to Horatio's car and looked in at her sleeping daughter. She placed Carli back in the backseat and just watched her sleep. She violently rubbed her fist against her eyes to try and mask to the fact that she was crying. "God damn it," she muttered, "What am I supposed to do?"

"You could stay at my house tonight." Arianna turned to see Horatio standing a few feet from her. "What?" she asked.

"You could stay at my house tonight." Horatio repeated, "I have two spare bedrooms, my son is sleeping in one but you could use the other one tonight."

"You would be willing to let me, a complete stranger, sleep in your house? How do you know I'm not some kind of psycho killer?"

Horatio looked at her and nodded his head once. "Grissom trusts you so I trust you. Besides, I don't think a psycho killer would have kept a small child with her." He gave her a kind but sly smile. "What do you say?"

Arianna sighed and thought over her options. She had no money. After the divorce she was practically broke, her husband had taken everything. That's why she had booked the cheapest hotel in town and was going to live with her insane sister, even though she would rather sleep in a cardboard box. But the Nevada court system probably wouldn't like the idea of a young child sleeping in the streets, they would rather she have a roof over her head.

"Fine," she said, pulling open the door on Horatio's car, "But tomorrow I'm leaving for my sister's. I'm not some kind of charity case."

"I'm not saying you are." Horatio calmly replied, starting his car. "I can see you just need a place to sleep tonight. I have a room open so I'm offering it to you."

Arianna sighed and rubbed the tears from her eyes again. "Thank you," she quietly said, "You've been so kind to me already and I hardly know you."

"Well Officer Wolfe," Horatio said, noting how strange it felt to say that to someone else, "You'll get to know me over the course of the next few weeks, seeing as I am your boss now."

Arianna groaned. "Why does that make this all seem so much weirder." She pulled a bottle of hand sanitizer from her purse and poured some into her hands "Sorry, I have OCD, that place made me feel gross."

"It's quite alright," Horatio said with a smile, "One of my other CSIs also suffers from OCD. My daughter gives him hell about it, too."

"Is your daughter dating him?"

"Yeah, how did you guess?"

"Well I would imagine if she wasn't you would have said something different, like she teases him about it. Giving him hell about it implies they're a little closer than friends. How old is your daughter?"

"She's twenty-eight, my son is twenty-one."

"Two children? What are they doing with their lives?"

"Well Kyle is in the army and he's visiting me right now stateside. Jessica works for me in the Crime Lab, but she's off in Ireland right now visiting her grandparents."

"Your parents are from Ireland?"

"No, her mother's parents." Horatio paused for a moment. "Jessica's adopted, too, just like your daughter."

Arianna looked at him confused. "Then how does she know her grandparents?"

"I knew her biological parents. Her mother died when she was four from leukemia and her father when she was fourteen while in the line of duty. It was in her father's will that I was to adopt Jessie Bug."

Horatio pulled out his cell phone and opened his pictures. He handed it to Arianna. She looked at the picture of Horatio and the young boy and girl with him. The boy looked almost identical to Horatio, but with blonder hair, more strawberry blonde, and shorter. The girl was the black sheep. Her hair was blonde and wavy with a few curls. She was almost taller than her brother. All three had the same blue eyes.

"How does she have the same color eyes as you and your son?" Arianna asked as she continued to examine the picture.

"She has one of my kidneys, her eyes changed color from green to blue after the surgery."

"Why does she have one of your kidneys?"

"Both of hers died. She was attacked by her ex-boyfriend. He stabbed out both and they died almost immediately."

"That's incredible." Arianna said, handing back the phone. "She must be very strong."

Horatio nodded his head. "She's had a rough past, but she hasn't let it affect her future."

"They're beautiful." A small shy smile spread across Horatio's face at the compliment.

"Thank you" he said. Horatio pulled into the garage of a beach house and cut the engine. "Well welcome to my home."

They climbed from the car. Horatio gingerly lifted Carli from the backseat and held her in his arms for a moment before he handed her to Arianna. He pulled the suitcases from the trunk and carried them into the house. Arianna grabbed her purse and carry on and followed Horatio.

His house was impressive. It was sleek and modern and incredibly clean. Arianna chuckled as she followed Horatio up the stairs. "It looks like you were expecting company."

"No, working in homicide and as a crime scene investigator has caused me to never leave my house without making the bed and loading the dishwasher." Horatio chuckled, "After walking through so many dirty houses I couldn't stand the thought of someone looking through my personal items and my home if they were a mess if anything was ever to happen to me."

Arianna smiled and looked into his deep blue eyes. He looked at his feet and a shy smile graced his face again. "Um, your room is this way." He said, walking past her without making eye contact again.

Horatio opened the door and lead Arianna in. He set her suitcases by the bed and looked around for a moment. "If you need anything feel free to ask." He said to her. Arianna smiled at him and Horatio looked at his feet again with the same shy smile.

"I can't believe it," she thought, "He can't possibly be attracted to me."

"No, I think we're fine." Arianna said. She pulled back the blanket on the bed and gingerly set her daughter into the bed. "I think Carli's got the right idea here though. I'm ready for some sleep."

"Well sleep well." Horatio said, "I think I'll be turning in for the night also. Do you know when you're leaving tomorrow?"

"Um, I'm not entirely sure. I still need to call my sister and see when she'll be home."

"Well feel free to stay as long as you need." Horatio said with a smile, "You're welcome as long as you need."

Arianna smiled at him. "Thank you Horatio, you're such a caring person. Your wife must be a lucky woman."

Horatio's eyes filled with sorrow and he diverted his eyes. "Thank you" was all he quietly muttered before he left the room. He stopped in the door and looked at her again and smiled. "Good night" he said to her.

"Good night Horatio" she replied.

He shut the door and Arianna released a breathe she hadn't realized she was holding. She sat on the bed and looked at her sleeping daughter. Her heart fluttered suddenly and her hand flew to her chest. She felt her heart pounding within her ribs and for a moment feared she was having a heart attack. Then she realized it wasn't a heart attack, it was butterflies in her stomach. How long had they been there?

Arianna shook it off. She stood from the bed and kicked off her shoes. She lazily tossed her jeans to the floor and climbed in wearing just her t-shirt and panties. She carefully pulled her daughter against her chest and held her close as she drifted off into a peaceful slumber.