A/N: Hey there, remember us? Or more importantly, remember this little story? So much has happened since we last saw each other and the new year is keeping us on our toes as well. Can you believe it's only March?

We had a really hard time coming to terms with the end of the show and personal health, as well as sick relatives, kept us from sitting down and spending time with this version of Darvey. There won't be weekly updates like in the past but we will do our best to post regularly and not make it six months between chapters ever again.

We know where the story is going and it's all clear in our heads, so we can guarantee that it will be finished. Just allow us some time to get back in the groove.

Chapter 16 has been half-written for a while and now that the inspiration and motivation are back, we wanted to post it as a surprise and big thank you for all your patience.

This chapter would not be what it is without the sharp mind of Aimee (AimeeValle1). She had such a great time helping us out, that she now became a (glorious) writer herself. Check out The One and The Closer if you haven't yet. But please, only after you read this ;-)

Okay, enough talk! Let's go over to Seattle and check in with Donna & Harvey. Enjoy!

Heather & Stefanie (Andelin - on FFnet)


Chapter 16

**Donna's POV**

"That Clam Chowder was delicious. Almost as delicious as you." We step out of the restaurant and Harvey pulls me into his chest to give me a kiss.

This is the first time we have kissed in front of Lily and while it was very chaste, I lean away from him quickly.

"Did you just compare me to a fish soup?" I hit Harvey's arm in mock outrage.

"Not fish, clam. There's a difference," he clarifies.

"As if that is any better. The only sea creature you could successfully compare me to would be Ariel."

"Redhead, beautiful singing voice and fascinated with forks. That sounds about right."

"You're an idiot." I smile up to him, pulling him closer towards me again.

"If you're Ariel, that means I'm Prince Eric." He thinks for a second. "Rich, handsome, -"

"Easily distracted by a brunette."

His eyes widen and only now do I realize what I just implied.

"Donna, I would never -"

"I didn't mean it like that," I cut him short.

Harvey takes my face into his hands and forces it up until I look him in the eyes.

"There will never be anyone but you. You and Lizzie, you are my life. I thought you knew that."

"It was a joke, Harvey."

"Are you sure?"

He looks worried but I just roll my eyes at him and step out of his hold.

"Everyone knows that the only woman Harvey Specter ever cheats with is Lady Justice."

Turning my back on him, I take Lizzie out of her grandmother's arms and press a kiss to my baby's forehead to hide my tears from the Specters. It might have started out as a joke but there was more truth to it than I am willing to admit. Would Harvey ever be able to choose us over his love of the law?

We walk along the boardwalk for a short while before Lily excuses herself. She has a phone call scheduled with Bobby and after not seeing or speaking to him for a few days, she is as excited as a teenager with a crush. The fact that Harvey makes fun of her about it, shows how far they have come in their relationship. In all the years by Harvey's side, I always knew what to expect of him. I knew his thoughts, feelings, and desires, better than he did. The Harvey standing before me now is a changed man. What I've seen of him makes me love him more and at the same time, somehow I feel more vulnerable around him. Our dynamic has shifted, I can't read his every thought and therefore can't protect my heart from what might happen. Would I be able to survive Harvey choosing New York over us if I can't see it coming?

The rest of the way to our Westlake office, I keep unusually quiet but Harvey is too preoccupied with Lizzie to notice.

~oOo~

Stepping back into the clinic feels more like coming home than I expected. This place saved me from going under during the worst months of my life. Even though Harvey has been here before, no tour of my Seattle would be complete without showing him where I work.

When I left New York, I never thought I would feel as comfortable in another firm as I did at Specter Litt. I spent more time in those offices than my own home and I never expected anything to fill that void.

Harvey, Louis, and Jessica had been my family for the longest time and no one can replace them, but what I have with my team here is something even stronger. This place isn't a stepping stone, a line on a resume. It's a life, a family, a home. I have met parents, siblings, and children of almost everyone working here. When we order takeout, everyone comes together, not just an elite two or three. There is no real hierarchy here, no partners calling the shots. We have all built this clinic together and made it what it is today.

I am a mentor and confidante to the young girls starting their careers here and together we change lives and not just make rich men richer. It's rewarding work and my compassionate nature has come in handy more times than I can count. I am finally where I was meant to be and this is the only place I can see giving my daughter the life she deserves.

~oOo~

**Harvey's POV**

How can one just stop being yourself?

Looking around the 'Hope for the Future' Legal Clinic, I don't see high-stakes and cutthroat Harvey Specter fitting in here. Ever.

The offices are buzzing, young lawyers joking around with secretaries, and while the building has fewer windows than my firm, everything here feels brighter, lighter, and just happier than back home.

I take a look at Donna, who looks like all the sorrow of the last few days has finally left her body. She seems calm, relaxed and even a bit excited when stepping off the elevator. The glow I was missing from our old days is back. This is her home, and the way the room quiets down the second that people notice her in the hallway is proof that she is reigning this empire just like she had done in New York.

There is a loud squeal and two young, brunette women rush towards us.

"She's here!" they almost yell in sync.

Before I know what is happening, four hands reach for my daughter, who, despite the noise, is still asleep in her stroller.

I am just about to yank the stroller back and put a protective arm over Lizzie when Donna steps in the women's way and they throw themselves around her neck instead.

My eyes find Mike's, who must have been alarmed by the two secretaries' screams. He rolls his eyes at them and then steps closer to pull them away from my girlfriend.

"I know that you've missed your cult leader, but give her some room to breathe. We still need her to be able to come back one day."

The use of his commanding voice sobers the brunettes up and they transform back to the young professionals I know them as.

"Kaitlin, Olivia," Donna addresses her and Mike's assistants, "would you like to meet Lillian Elizabeth Specter?"

I can hear the start of a squeal again but one look from Donna shuts them up.

"Lillian, what a beautiful name," Olivia smiles and tries to look past Donna into the stroller.

"Specter?" Kaitlin gives first Donna a look and then seems to notice me standing behind her boss. Her eyes widen and she takes a step back from the shock.

We had only met twice but judging by the less than welcoming look she is giving me now, she knows more about our past than she had ever let on.

Donna is not reacting to her secretary's question but turns to me instead.

"I know she is sleeping, but would you mind handing me Lizzie so she can meet these two Scream Queens?"

She can read my opinion on that on my face clearly, but she wouldn't be Donna if she followed my lead.

"Why don't I take her to my office and you wait here with Mike? I won't be long." She leaves a quick kiss on my cheek and struts down the hallway with the stroller, secretaries in tow.

I follow her with my eyes until she has rounded the corner.

"Here to check out your new office?"

"Excuse me?" I give Mike a side-eyed look. The words might have come out harsher than I intended to but he was being way too presumptuous.

Holding up his hands in defense, he turns his back on me and follows Donna to their offices.

"It was just a joke, man," he says over his shoulder. When he is further down the hall, he adds, "And for the record, you could do way worse than this place."

The handful of associates in the glass-walled kitchen give me a curious look and start whispering, so I turn my back on them as well.

Left all alone in the reception area, I consider waiting for Donna and Lizzie outside, but I don't want her to wonder where I went. Not in the mood to join her in her office either, I just pull out my phone and check my emails instead.

After everything that happened this morning, I completely forgot about my messages and it isn't a surprise that my inbox is flooded. The majority seems to be from Louis and Robert, the exclamation points in the subject lines only increasing the further I scroll. The last message only reads "If you still want a job tomorrow, call me now!"

I am just about to dial Robert's number when the elevator doors opposite me open and a man about my own age frantically steps into the reception area. He quickly looks around the empty hall before his eyes fall on me.

"I need help. You're a lawyer, right?"

I look down at my gray jeans and dark blue shirt with rolled-up sleeves. While my clothes don't change my profession, I couldn't look less like the million-dollar attorney that I am back home.

"Yes," I confirm the man's question, "but I don't -"

"You need to help me, please." He runs his hands through his hair and by the disheveled look of it, it wasn't the first time today.

I get ready to tell him again that yes, I was an attorney, but I wasn't working here nor am licensed to practice in this state. My mouth falls shut again when the next words leave his mouth.

"It's my daughter. They are trying to take my daughter from me."

"They…?"

"My ex and her mother."

He starts roaming the space before me and by now has attracted even more attention than I did earlier.

My initial reaction was to pull him aside and command him to calm the fuck down, but then I thought of Lizzie. If I was in his situation, I would punch anyone who stood in my way. Instead, I'm thinking back to all the years that outraged people tried to storm my office and the only solution that comes to my mind is W. W. D. D. - What Would Donna Do?

I step in the man's way, forcing him to look at me. Being this close to him, I can see him shaking, sweat running down his temples.

"Why don't you sit down and I will find someone who can help you."

We don't need to go far, as Mike is already waiting in front of the conference room for us. We take a seat and Olivia brings in three glasses of water before closing the door behind her.

Mike introduces himself and then Nick, the proud father of a two-year-old little girl, tells us all about his drug-using ex-girlfriend, her doctor mother who fakes health records for her, and their claim that he's not the father.

"So you're not on the birth certificate, but you have taken a paternity test?"

"We broke up before she realized she was pregnant and I wasn't there for the birth. I only found out when I ran into her on the street, baby strapped to her chest. Her mother took the test in her clinic, but I also know that Amber is mine. Julie wouldn't cheat. She's not that kind of girl."

The similarity to my life makes me swallow hard. I was never more grateful that Donna changed her mind and told me about Lizzie before I missed her birth.

"You said she's using?" Mike continues taking notes, the frown on his face growing deeper.

"We met in NA meetings. I was her sponsor for a while but had someone else take her on when we got involved romantically. I know that being a former user doesn't speak well for me, but I haven't touched that shit in over 20 years now. I'm clean and I would never risk my daughter. Ever."

"And Julie would?"

"She's got a new boyfriend and he got her back into drugs. She steals them from her mom's clinic but the woman is too conceited to ever admit that her daughter is a druggy and just using her. I want my girl out of there but as I'm not her legal father, I don't have any rights."

Mike puts his notepad aside and sits back in his chair.

"I have to be honest with you, Nick, I'm not sure how much help we can be for you. This isn't really the sort of case we normally take."

Nick's eyes widen in fear. "But you're a legal clinic. I don't have the money for a hot-shot attorney like Julie's mom does. Please."

I don't think I have ever seen someone more desperate than Nick, and I have put innocent men into prison before.

"Please!"

"It's just not where our expertise lies," Mike continues. "We are specialized in class actions and take on large corporations. I'm very sorry."

Nick's face falls.

"We can ask around if anyone has the means to take your case on, but I have to warn you, that most clinics are at capacity at the moment and as there won't be a settlement fee involved, it could take months, if not years, until someone can fight your case in court."

Nick drops his head in his hand and his shoulders start shaking from his dry sobs.

Mike and I sit in silence, watching this man's world fall apart, both of us disheartened that we can't be of any help.

It takes a few minutes until Nick is calm enough to look at us again.

"Thank you for your time." He gets up and leaves the room without another word.

Mike and I share a look and before I know it, I'm pushing my chair back and hurry after Nick.

I catch him just as he's about to step on the elevator. Moving my hand in between the doors, I keep them from closing.

"I'm not sure how much help I can really be," I reach for the wallet in my back pocket and pull out one of my business cards, "but just in case you don't find anyone else, give me a call."

Stepping back, the doors close in front of me.

~oOo~

**Donna's POV**

It doesn't take long before Kaitlin and Olivia have to return to work again. We might have more fun here than in a regular law firm but that doesn't mean we are less busy.

Building up the clinic and waiting for cases to come in took a while but once we had made a name for ourselves in Seattle, the work kept piling up quickly.

I love being at home with Lizzie and currently, I am in too much pain to even consider returning to work, but looking around my office now, I can't wait to come back.

Two swift knocks on my door make me look up. I smile as I see Rachel leaning against the doorframe.

"You will not believe who I just saw in a client meeting with Mike."

"Is it that delicious lawyer from Fox, Luther, and Wayne?" I feel my own eyes starting to sparkle and I get up as quickly as I can.

"No." Rachel snorts. "But good to know that Harvey has some competition."

Disappointed, I fall back into my chair. "There is no competition, but just because I am with him now, doesn't mean I can't appreciate God's other creations." I give my friend a wink.

"Especially when they are hot and have an accent?"

I hold my hands up in defeat. "At least I can blame my hormones. What is your excuse?"

Rachel only laughs at me. "I miss having you in your office."

"I miss being in my office."

"There was a time when I thought I would never hear those words come from you."

"I try not to remember those months." I give Rachel a tight-lipped smile.

"It all worked out the way it was supposed to." She steps forward to pull me into a quick hug. "Now go and enjoy being a mom. This will all be waiting for you when you're ready to come back."

With a kiss on Lizzie's forehead, Rachel walks back towards her own office and I am left by myself. Turning towards my large window front, I take in Lake Union, sparkling in the sunshine.

The view, so similar, and yet so unlike my very first visit here.

~oOo~

I don't know what I expected, not even sure I lost a thought on the actual clinic part of my new job, but what I do know is that I didn't envision this.

The building the clinic is located in is more glass than brick and reminds me more of the Specter Litt offices than Mike's last stomping ground. So much for moving on.

Just as I finish parking the car, someone opens my door for me. Looking up, I am confronted with my new boss' smiling face.

"Nice honeymoon glow, Puppy." I get out of my seat and pull Mike into a hug. It's only been a week, but I have missed him more than I thought possible. He is my forever connection to Harvey. A mini version of the man I have loved and lost forever. They even use the same aftershave, a Christmas present I now regret.

Mike pulls back and takes me in. I know he notices my red eyes, the bags under them and my even paler than normal skin tone. He's a gentleman though and doesn't comment on it.

"Rachel can't wait to see you." He links my arm with his and leads me towards the entrance.

"Where is the new Mrs. Ross? I want to ask her if she already regrets marrying you."

"Why? Do you hope we will get a divorce and I can finally be yours?" he jokes as we step on the elevator.

"Oh, Mike. As if you could ever handle all this." I gesture along my body.

He looks me up and down, giving me a wink.

"You don't know what I can handle."

"But I do know." I raise an eyebrow at him. "One glass of wine and your wife spills all her secrets."

Mike's eyes widen in shock.

"What did she tell you?"

The elevator doors open before I can reply. I step into the lobby, turn around and wink at my friend.

"Let's just say, I will never sit on your couch again."

~oOo~

"Donna!" Rachel winds her way through handyman and building materials, falling around my neck when she reaches me. In my heels, I tower over my friend who in her jeans and flat boots definitely fits in better in our current environment. "I'm so happy you are here with us."

Mike pulls his wife off me and into his side, the newlyweds both giving me their biggest smiles.

Rachel moves her arms around, presenting the half-built offices like a price on Let's Make a Deal.

"So, what do you think?" My friend is practically bouncing on her feet. I take a look around, the exposed brick wall and industry style windows, an understated sophistication that feels both professional and homely.

"It's very... Seattle."

Rachel's face falls at my words.

"You don't like it."

"No, Rach. I didn't say that. It's beautiful. It actually feels like the perfect mix of you two. Elegant and airy meets tough but warm."

Mike laughs at my explanation but Rachel is not convinced.

"Then why don't I believe you?"

"You should. It's just, I'm not sure I fit in here." I look down at my 5-inch heels and tight dress.

A look crosses Mike's face but it's gone before I can decipher it.

"The day Donna Paulsen feels out of place somewhere, is the day hell freezes over." Rachel grins again. "Come along, I will show you to your office."

I follow her as she makes her way down the hall past a seating area and a meeting room, already furnished and ready to be used.

Rachel stops at a corner office, the empty room opening up to the view of the boat pier on what I assume to be Lake Union.

"This will be Mike's office," Rachel explains to me. "Mine is right next door and yours will just be one door down." She leans close to me to whisper her next words. "I saved us the ones with the best view, don't tell Andy."

I chuckle at my friend's enthusiasm.

"It's not the New York skyline, but as far as views go, this one isn't half bad," Rachel concludes.

"No furniture?" I look into her office next door which is just as bare as Mike's.

"We chose ours when we arrived yesterday but wanted to wait for you before we ordered it. There are some catalogs in the meeting room you can browse through. Mike ordered lunch right before you arrived, so why don't you look around your office and meet us in the kitchen when you are done?"

I nod at her and watch her glide down the hallway. Halfway down, she turns around again.

"You have no idea how happy I am that you are joining us. It wouldn't have been the same without you."

I force a smile and make my way to my new office.

The room is big and the view beautiful. Stepping closer to the window, I look out at the wintery lake. Despite the season, there are a few people out and about. A young woman is pushing a stroller along the lakefront, her husband walking behind her, holding both hands of their little daughter who takes a few unsteady steps. A man jogs past them and an older couple is sitting on a bench nearby, warmly dressed for this sunny but cold winter day.

This might be the biggest change that Seattle will bring. Actual free time to enjoy life, like any other normal person. I might not be fifty floors up but I still feel as much an outsider as I did back home.

Quickly turning my back on the view, I take a look around the room again, visualizing my new furniture in it and then I hurry back towards my friends.

I find the kitchen easily and just as the meeting room, it is ready to be used. Rachel is portioning the Thai food onto three plates while Mike is hugging her from behind, pulling her closer to his chest as he whispers sweet nothings into her ear.

Rachel is giggling, slapping his arm in mock annoyance and the tears that wouldn't spill earlier, force their way into my eyes now. I turn around and rush towards the restrooms that Rachel pointed out to me before.

I hope Lucifer's got a coat because hell was about to freeze over.

~oOo~

Lizzie's whimpering pulls me back into the present. Like I told Rachel, I don't like thinking back to my start here. I gave this life a chance even though it broke me every day anew. Things became easier later into my pregnancy but I know exactly how Harvey must be feeling right now. The only difference is, that I chose this life while Harvey was forced into it. And if there's anything Harvey hates almost as much as being lied to, it's being pushed into a corner.

I take the stroller and make my way back toward reception. Walking past the conference room, I remember Rachel mentioning a mysterious meeting but the room is empty.

I find Harvey by the elevators right where I left him. He seems lost in thought and he doesn't react to me until my hand finds his shoulder.

"You ready to go? Have a quiet evening at home?" I smile at him.

He nods, taking a now wide awake Lizzie out of her carrier. He pulls her close into his chest and presses a long kiss on her head.

"Ready when you are."

We are just about to get in the car when Robert calls Harvey's phone.

Handing me the keys, Harvey straps Lizzie in before he hits accept. The whole drive home, I listen in on Robert chewing my boyfriend out for just leaving on a whim. I know that Harvey spoke to Louis but apparently, he never contacted his Managing Partner or let his secretary know when he would be back.

From what I can catch, it sounds like the firm's newest client is being sued for pumping oil into a wildlife refuge and Robert expects Harvey to come home immediately.

So much for a quiet evening at home.

~oOo~

The second the microwave beeps, I open the door to it and let the steam escape. A quick look at the bassinet confirms that Lizzie is still fast asleep. She had an adventurous day, one that maybe was too much for her tiny one-week-old self. I am certainly exhausted and feel every last muscle in my body. After moving very little the last few weeks of my pregnancy, our Seattle excursion took a toll on me. It is not just the physical bits that tired me out, the emotional rollercoaster that this day has been, just makes me want to crawl into bed and shut my eyes for as long as our newborn allows me to.

After we returned home, Harvey stayed in the living room with us while I tried to feed Lizzie but when he loudly refused Robert's demands to come home and started screaming not just at Robert, but Robert's right-hand woman Samantha, and his own client, I asked him to take the call to my study. He has been locked in there for the last four hours.

I fed and burped Lizzie and then started on dinner, hoping that Harvey would come out in time for us to eat together. It wasn't so.

It was close to 8 pm now and I had enough. Nothing more could be achieved at this time of night.

Taking the hot plate out of the microwave, I cautiously walk towards my home office. The muffled voice behind it rises in volume the moment I am about to knock. I quickly retreat and put the lasagna on the dining room table, falling onto one of the chairs in front of it.

I should have known that nothing would ever be easy when it comes to our relationship. We are Donna and Harvey after all. One talk can't fix years of miscommunication and suppressed feelings. I hoped that seeing where I work and who I spent my days with would help him realize why my heart is in Seattle now.

We took one step, maybe even a leap, forward this morning, but now, twelve hours later, I feel like we took three steps back. How can we ever make it work, when Harvey doesn't like the clinic, his work is taking priority over his family already and Zane Specter Litt simply can't exist without him there?

A loud bang and a screamed curse word coming from the office, makes me flinch.

How did this day, that had started out so wonderfully, take such a turn for the worse in just a few hours?

~oOo~

**Harvey's POV**

"Motherfucker!"

My empty water glass hits the office wall and it takes everything in me not to make my cell phone follow suit.

I drop down on the couch and with shaking hands, I press the speed dial on my phone.

It only takes a few seconds for the call to connect and for the words to pour out.

"I don't think I can do this." I loudly exhale and drop my head into my hands.

"What?" Marcus asks, clearly caught off guard.

"I really thought I could, I want to - for her - but I don't see how this can work. I don't want to break her heart, but -"

"Harvey Reginald Specter, if you really leave your child and that beautiful woman without even trying, I am done being your brother." I don't think I have ever heard Marcus this angry and I sit up stunned.

"What are you talking about?"

"You have only been a father for a week and you are already giving up. I really expected more from you. Donna and Lizzie are the best things that have ever happened to you and they deserve so much better."

I would laugh about Marcus' assumptions if his words weren't hitting so close to home. While there is no way I would ever leave my girls, they do deserve better. But I would never let my brother know that.

"Thank you, dipshit, for the vote of confidence. I was actually not talking about them, I was talking about work."

"What about it?"

I get up from the couch and start pacing through the room.

"I have this big case in New York and me being here, it just doesn't work. They need me to come home."

"And you don't want to leave Donna," Marcus concludes for me.

There is no need for me to reply.

"Can't she come with you? She's still on maternity leave and it's just for one case."

"It is never just one case," I explain to him. "There will always be a next one and she is very adamant that she doesn't want to return to New York."

"Then quit."

I stop in my tracks.

"Excuse me?"

"It's as easy as that. You have your work and you have Donna. If you can't have both, you will need to choose one."

"And stay in Seattle?" I could hear the repugnance in my own voice.

"I know it's not New York, but I'm sure they have bagels and coffee there."

"I should love it just because it's far away from you," I joke.

"And yet, you don't."

"And yet, I don't." I let my words linger for a moment, trying to find a way to explain the situation to my brother. "It's not even the city. Sure, it's not New York, but it has a certain charm. I just can't see myself here. My firm is back home. And what would I even do here?"

"Doesn't Donna work at that legal clinic? I'm sure they would gladly take you on."

"I don't think that is going to happen."

"Don't tell me they said no to The Harvey Specter?"

I snort. "They basically already have an office waiting for me."

"Let me guess, it's the biggest one in the whole building?"

"Not even remotely." I walk over to the couch again and let myself fall down on it.

"So you don't want the job because they didn't give you a bigger office? You know that you are being ridiculous, right? We don't judge success by the size of an office."

"I fought too long and too hard to get my name on the wall to not have that anymore. I'm not ready to go backward in my career just yet." I focus my attention on my fingertips that are drumming against each other.

"Then don't. No one says you have to take this particular job."

"Donna does," I mumble the words under my breath but Marcus still hears them.

"I don't believe that for a second. All Donna wants is for you to be happy."

"How can I be happy without her?" I move my gaze away from my hands and to the window, the sun slowly setting.

"I thought you were a couple now."

"We are, but we have always worked together. It's what we do, it's who we are."

"No, it's not." I have rarely heard my brother this stern with me. "You are partners and parents. Donna will still be there at the end of the day when you come home. She is not leaving you just because you are not working together."

"I need this to work out. I need things to go back to the way they were."

"Harvey, it will never go back to the way it was. You have a kid now and life will never be the same again. Take it from someone who just lost their wife and children because he wasn't willing to make changes in his life."

Now it was time for me to get angry. "We are not you and Katie."

"Harvey, listen to me," Marcus replied in a soothing tone. "Nothing is more important than your family. Nothing. All the titles and names on the walls and big offices mean nothing if you don't have the people you love in your life."

"Are you saying that I can't have it all?"

"I'm saying that you need to redefine what all means for the two of you. I will forever regret not fighting harder for Katie and not being able to save us. Don't make the same mistake."

"Donna and Lizzie are my life. I'm not going to let them go." I get up again, too agitated to sit down, and stride up and down in front of the window.

"That's what I thought about my family, too. But we Specter men are idiots and it's only a matter of time until we fuck up. It's a miracle Donna stayed by your side as long as she did. You really don't deserve her."

"She wants to stay here, I know she does. But I feel out of place. I don't fit in there."

"You won't know until you try."

"And what if I don't want to try? What I have in New York is great."

"But having Donna is better," Marcus voices my thoughts.

I turn away from the window and am surprised to see Donna standing in the doorway to her study. I give her a warm smile and ask Marcus to hang on for a second.

"I thought you might be hungry." Donna walks over to the desk and puts the plate of lasagna down on it.

"Why didn't you just get me? We could have had dinner together." I feel the insane urge to take her into my arms. The mess in New York, the uncertainty about my future, it is all muted in my head when I see her.

"You were busy, I didn't want to keep you from your work." Her voice is emotionless and her face doesn't give much away either but I can feel that something is off with her.

"I would have made the time." My voice takes on that special tone that I reserve just for her.

"It's okay, Harvey. Go, eat. Before it gets cold again."

She's almost out the door but I manage to grab her arm just in time.

"Donna? Is everything alright?" I try to read her face but I get nothing from it.

Finally, a closed-lipped smile spreads on her face.

"Of course, Harvey. Everything is normal."

She slowly pulls her arm out of my hold, turns and closes the door behind her.

"Harvey, are you still there?" Marcus' voice breaks me out of my trance.

"Yes, sorry. What were we talking about?"

"You being an idiot and Donna choosing the wrong Specter brother," Marcus jokes.

I think back to all the things Donna had done for me over the years. The life she gave up so I could achieve my dreams, never getting anything in return.

"I really don't deserve her." Somehow the thought makes my throat tighten.

"So," Marcus decides to change the topic to something lighter, "tell me about that niece of mine. Mom can't stop sending me pictures of her. Is she keeping you on your toes?"

My face breaks out into a wide grin and I tell my brother all about the little girl who holds my heart in her two tiny hands. All thoughts and worries about legal clinics and broken families pushed to the back of my mind for now.

~oOo~

**Donna's POV**

"And what if I don't want to try? What I have in New York is great."

Harvey's words to his brother resound in my head while I clean up the kitchen and get Lizzie ready for the night. Once she is nursed and back asleep, I curl up in bed myself. Still alone.

I was a fool to believe that Harvey would drop everything just because I want him to. I made a new family here, one that picked me up when I was at the bottom. My work here gave me purpose and a reason to go on. Zane Specter Litt did the same for Harvey. How can I ask him to drop the only lifeline he has ever known to jump into complete uncertainty with us. I know it is selfish of me but I had hoped that he would at least consider it for his daughter. For us.

Lizzie whimpers quietly and my hand finds her tummy in the dark. Lightly stroking my fingers back and forth over her onesie, I make a decision. All I ever wanted was for Harvey to be happy. I know he loves me and he loves Lizzie more than his own life, but he had never really known what was best for himself. That's what he had me for. If he can't make a decision, I will have to make one for him. It's what he needs.

"Looks like it's going to be just you and me now, baby girl. Just you and me."

If I really love Harvey, maybe it's time to let him go. For his own good.