Hi guys. This has been so crazy writing this story. I have never written so much so fast, but this story has been writing itself. I am insanely proud of this and I hope it lives up to all your expectations.

She had never taken the bus to New York City by herself before. It was surprising she even remembered how to navigate it all. The last time they went to the city was a few years ago when Donna was starring in an off-Broadway play. High school had been hard on Josie, especially junior year, and since it was just them, Donna didn't want to be far away from her, so she decided to do more plays in New Jersey instead. That was the kind of mother she was. No matter what, Donna had always been there for her girl.

The ride was extremely lonely without her mother, but soon she wouldn't be alone anymore. The whole reason for her sneaking out early this morning to catch the first bus was simple: Josie was about to meet her father for the first time.

Seventeen years of her life had gone by without him, and now she was determined to not let another day go by without him knowing that she existed. She didn't blame her mother for never telling him because she understood why she did it. He hurt her, worse than anyone else ever had. That's probably the main reason Donna never took another lover since then.

The last thing Josie wanted was for her mother to get hurt by all of this, but she needed to know who her father was and decide for herself how she felt about him. She's getting ready to go to college next year and she can't go without knowing him. Harvey Specter was the missing piece.

As she watched the bus get closer to the tunnel, she felt a vibration coming from her pocket. When she took out her phone, the caller ID read "Mom" accompanied by a picture of the two of them from her last birthday. Every year, they took a new goofy selfie to update her phone with. It was another tradition for them.

"Hi, Mom," she whispered.

"Where did you go? I made waffles this morning and expected you to come running down the stairs like you always do, but you didn't," Donna exclaimed with a sense of worry behind her words.

"Oh, I'm sorry. I–uh," she hesitated, unsure of what to tell her mother. "I'm at the library prepping for the SATs."

There's a slight pause before Donna spoke. "Have you forgotten that I know people better than they know themselves? I am also really good at knowing when you're lying to me."

"I–" Before Josie could finish her thought, static filled her ears as the call dropped from the poor reception. She looked out the window and realized that they had gone into the tunnel.

When the daylight reappeared, she was blown away by the skyscrapers before her. It had been awhile since she had seen the city, and she pressed her nose to the glass, attempting to get a better view. While it was definitely different, everything felt the same.

As she left Port Authority, the sound of cars beeping and people yelling, the flashing lights from the billboards above, and the fast pace of the people around her all brought back the memories of her youth. She was exactly where she was supposed to be.

Hailing a cab was easier than she thought. Her mother was always great at it, but she blamed that on her killer legs. Donna had lived in the city for a few years before moving to New Jersey, and she never failed to teach her daughter all the tricks she had learned while there. This was definitely one of her better ones.

As the cab made its way to her father's apartment, she looked out the window in awe. His place was even more grand than she thought it would be. It felt weird for her to see what she had been missing all these years.

Making her way inside the building, her nerves kicked in. She was about to meet him, the man she had been dreaming about her whole life, the man who still had no clue she existed. Every fear came rushing into her head. What if he hated her or what if he never wanted kids? What if he hates kids?

The ding of the elevator reaching the top floor snapped her out of her haze. Everything had been leading up to this moment when she would knock on her father's door and see him for the first time. She imagined what he had looked like, but she still was clueless. The only thing she had to go on was her mother's description of him. Josie chose not to look at any pictures of him, because she wanted the first time she saw him to be special.

The moment was finally here as she approached his door. She formed her sweaty fist and nervously knocked on the door.

It felt like she had been waiting a century for the door to open, but it had only been seconds. She could hear the footsteps getting closer and closer behind the door, which caused her heart to race even more. The sound of the door unlocking nearly made her jump out of her own skin.

Disappointment set in as she realized the person who had opened the door was not her father. The woman standing before her was nothing special. She looked uptight and uneasy when she noticed her red hair. Her judgmental eyes felt like they were burning through her.

"Can I help you?" the woman asked, donning a British accent.

"I–uh," she stuttered, when she noticed the huge ring on the woman's ring finger. "Does uh–"

Josie was interrupted by another girl around her age running up behind her. She was the spitting image of the woman before her. "Who is that?" the young girl asked.

"Whatever you're selling, we don't want any. Thank you," the woman explained shortly.

Josie was so lost between the devil before her and the evil spawn next to her that she could no longer form words. She didn't even know the people in front of her, but she already couldn't stand them. They were completely rude and acted as though they were above her. Her mother always taught her to treat everyone the way you wanted to be treated and that was what she would do.

"I'm looking for…" her thoughts drifted as the elevator dinged once again behind her. Out walked a dashing man with an older woman who looked to be his mother. All the feelings she thought she would feel in that moment came flooding in, but it was even better than she had imagined. The two before her were carrying bags of bagels and coffee for the morning. "Harvey Specter?"

The man curiously looked at the young redhead before him. "I'm sorry do we–"

"Know each other? Not yet," Josie interrupted. "I'm Josie. I'm Donna's daughter. But more importantly… I'm your daughter."

Harvey nearly dropped the bag of bagels on the ground after hearing the words that came out of her mouth. "Donna?" The older woman asked. "You haven't seen her since college, I thought."

"He hasn't," Josie explained. "I'm seventeen as of yesterday."

The woman gasped behind her, clearly knowing about her fiancé's past lover. "Darling, you can't believe the word of some stranger who appears at your doorstep. She could be reporting on your big case coming up," the woman begged.

"Paula, enough," Harvey exclaimed. "How do I know you're telling the truth?"

Josie looked down at the floor as she nervously paced. "My full name is Josie Lillian Paulsen. I was named after you, I assume?" she smiled as she looked over at Lily.

"Yes, I am indeed Lily. I knew I always liked your mother," she gloated.

"That still doesn't mean–"

Josie interrupted with a smug, "Summer of '93."

Harvey's eyes widened. The time was clearly important to him as a look of understanding seemingly washed over his face. "You really are my kid."

"I really am." Josie stood there awkwardly for a moment, unsure of what to do next.

"Why don't you join us for breakfast? New York has the best bagels," Lily cheered.

Harvey was still watching her in awe. He was in his own world with Josie. "Right. Breakfast. Join us," he stated. Walking toward her, he placed a hand on her back to guide her inside. "This is Paula, my fiancé and her daughter, Clarissa."

Clarissa stared her down while her mother put on her fakest smile as Josie entered.

"Do you want any coffee, Josie?" Lily asked, as she walked around the island.

"Sure," Josie explained, finding a seat at the table. "Do you have any vanilla for it?" she questioned.

Lily smiled at her request. "Harv… your father," she corrected, "loves vanilla in his coffee, too." She placed the coffee in front of her, quickly sitting down next to her.

She watched as Harvey shook his head at his mother, taking the other seat next to Josie. "How did you get here?" he wondered.

"I took the bus. I snuck out early this morning and caught the first one," Josie explained, quickly taking a sip of coffee to calm her nerves as if caffeine would help that.

"You snuck out? Donna doesn't know you're here?" Harvey questioned, frustration beginning to set in as he leaned back in his seat.

"I can explain." Josie's nerves skyrocketed as she noticed him become uneasy.

Paula chimed in, "Why would you not tell your mother you were coming here?"

"She's gonna get it in trouble," Clarissa teased.

"That's enough," Harvey scolded back.

A lick of heat skittered across Josie's skin as she watched the scene before her, uncertain of what to do. Emotion overwhelmed her, and she tried her hardest to blink back nervous tears. "Maybe I shouldn't have come, but for years I've been wondering about my father and who he was. So, yesterday for my birthday… I asked for your name. She probably thought I would just Google you or something, but I wanted to meet you. My mom decided for me that I was better off without you, but I wanted to make the choice myself."

Harvey swallowed back the pain from those memories with her mother.

The house was silent when he came home. He was exhausted from meeting with so many different professors, and he was ready to cuddle up with Donna in bed and just be there with her. He was so in love with her. There was never a moment where he didn't thank the gods for causing them to bump into each other during that rainstorm a year ago. She had made his world turn ever since and he had never felt like this before. There was a part of him that didn't think he was worthy of her love.

As he put his coat on the rack, he noticed the kitchen light was on and he called out for her, but she didn't answer. "Donna?" he yelled out again. The wood squeaked as he stepped closer and closer, worry setting in when she didn't reply once more. As he turned the corner, he was shocked to see his mentor, Daniel Hardman, sitting at their kitchen table. "Daniel? I'm surprised to see you. Did Donna let you in?" he asked, approaching the table to greet his guest. "The meetings went really well, I think I'll do big things at Harvard."

Daniel stood up from his seat and gave Harvey a hug. "I'm so glad to hear that. I know you will and yes, Donna did let me in."

"Ah, good, where is she? I can't wait to tell her about everything," he explained, giddy as ever as he looked around for her.

Just then, a look of sorrow washed over Daniel's face. "Harvey, I'm so sorry, but Donna isn't here."

"Oh, where'd she go?"

"She's gone, Harvey. She left you this," he explained as he handed Harvey the letter.

His eyes widened as he looked at it. His heart began to race as he ripped it open and took a seat at the table. A wave of emotion washed over him while he continued to read. The tears began to swell in his eyes when he looked up at Daniel. "Thomas Kessler? She left me for another man?" he cried.

"I'm sorry, Harvey. At least now you can focus on Harvard and being the best damn lawyer this city has ever seen," Daniel smiled. "I'm going to head out. Will you be okay?"

Harvey swallowed back the tears and all the pain as he answered, "The love of my life just left me, but yeah I'll be okay." Daniel understood and quietly left, leaving Harvey alone with all of his pain.

"Why didn't she tell me about you? She just up and left me," he mumbled.

"I don't know that part of the story," she said, confused as to what he meant. Her mother always told her that he had left her, so why was he saying this?

Paula once again interrupted, "Right. Well, we are sort of busy tonight, so you will have to come back and see Harvey some other time."

"No," Harvey stopped her. "We have a dinner at my firm tonight, I'd like it if you came with us."

Paula looked outraged by his sentiment. "We always have the spare guest room if she wants to stay and get to know you like she says," Lily added, smirking at Paula as she finished.

"Is that something you would want to do? I don't want to impose," he asked with a gentle tone, knowing how delicate the situation was.

Josie sat there with her mouth wide open. She was in shock. These people hardly knew her, but they wanted to know her. This was the part of her family she had been missing all these years. "I would love that, but I didn't bring anything to wear."

"Oh, that's no trouble. I'm free all day, and Harvey happens to have the day off. We can go shopping," Lily excitedly stated.

As Josie looked over at Harvey, he nodded in approval. Paula was clearly aggravated as she stood up from her seat. You could practically see the steam blowing from her ears. "I have to go to work. Clarissa, do you still want me to drive you to Daphne's?"

The girl threw her napkin down and got up with her mother, both of them leaving their messes behind. Paula shook her head at Harvey before walking out the door, hardly saying goodbye.

"Well, now that this pleasant breakfast is over, let's head to the shops," Lily insisted, reaching her hand out to Josie's and giving it a squeeze.

…

Lily has her hands full with different clothes for Josie to try on not even twenty minutes into their shopping spree. She quickly handed them all off to Harvey to carry when she spotted the perfect dress for tonight's dinner.

Josie and her father hadn't really gotten any alone time to talk since they had met, but now that Lily was off searching for dresses, it was the perfect opportunity for them to chat.

"What's this dinner for anyway?"

Harvey smiled at her question. "I asked myself the same thing when I found out about it," he chuckled. "We have one every year for the firm's lawyers and their families. The managing partner, Daniel Hardman, insists we have it. At least there's free food and booze, though," Harvey admitted. "Oh, wait. Not booze. You are seventeen. There's free apple juice?"

Laughter overcame Josie listening to her father struggle. "It was a good try," she comforted. "You are different than I imagined."

"Is that a good thing?" he inquired as they strolled down the pathway of the dress section.

"Yes. You're much taller," Josie joked, looking up at the man next to her.

Harvey's laugh sounded so similar to her own. "You definitely have your mother's humor," he paused, getting lost in the thought of her mother. "How is she?"

"She's good," Josie answered. "There's a show coming up in a month that she is in, here in New York. It's an off-Broadway play, but it's her first major role in a few years. I haven't seen her this excited about anything in a while."

"I'm glad she's happy," he explained with a brief smile.

Josie reluctantly admitted, "She's lonely." Harvey turned toward her with confusion in his eyes. "Ever since she had me, she hasn't been with anyone else. It's always been her and me."

Harvey was even more confused now, "What happened to–"

He was interrupted by Lily throwing more dresses in his hands. "Alright. I think I've gathered enough clothing for you to last a year," Lily announced, panting from the exhaustion of running around the store. "Let's go try them on. I got stuff for your father and me, too."

"Mom," Harvey groaned.

Lily reached her hand up in front of his face, stopping him from complaining anymore. "We are playing dress up with your daughter today. Come on," Lily cheered, grabbing Josie's hand and rushing toward the dressing rooms.

Harvey trailed behind them, slowing down because of all the clothing he was carrying. Josie laughed as she watched him hobble his way to them. She grabbed some of the clothing from his hands to help him out. "Thanks, kiddo," he chirped.

She was so used to her mom calling her kiddo that it sounded odd in a man's voice, but she liked it. She smiled at the thought as they parted ways into their dressing rooms. Immediately, Harvey's voice echoed throughout. "Mom… what are these?"

"They are suits, Harvey. Fun suits. Unlike all the other boring ones in your closet," Lily sassed back.

Josie was the first one out of her dressing room, so she patiently waited for the others.

"Oh, Josie! I love that dress. Blue looks so great with your hair!" Lily cheered as she walked out.

She looked at herself in the mirror and was shocked by how grown up she looked. There was never any need for her to dress up this fancy, so she never did, but she sort of liked it.

Her thoughts were interrupted by Harvey's dressing room door opening. "I am not buying this," he declared before walking out. When he did, the velvet, maroon suit he was wearing caused both Lily and Josie to laugh out loud. Even though the outfit was ridiculous, he somehow managed to still pull it off. Suits were definitely his thing.

"Oh, Harvey. You look adorable," Lily laughed.

Harvey shot a look at his mother telling her to stop, but when he noticed how happy he was making Josie, his frown went away. He suddenly decided to let loose for his daughter. "Well, I guess I better model it so you guys can see it better." Just then, Harvey began to runway walk his way down to Josie, striking a pose right in front of her. The action caused them both to erupt with laughter. "You've got your mother's legs, c'mon. You are definitely better at this than me."

Harvey went arm in arm with Josie back toward Lily, who was cheering them on. The show continued with every outfit they tried on, adding new poses and even dance moves. They were off having a party in the dressing room. "Alright. This is my last suit. I am starving and I could really use some lunch."

Josie nodded in agreement. She was exhausted from all the modeling anyway. "I saw a food court on the way in. We could eat there," she suggested.

"Let's pay and head over then," he agreed, gathering her dresses off the hooks. He reached his arm around her and brought her in for a hug, something that surprised her, yet felt so natural.

…

They all walked around the food court with hot dogs in hand. They all joked around and told funny stories from the past; Lily had lots of those. Josie was finally learning things about her father. These people had gone from strangers to family in a matter of hours.

"Hey, you two should go on the carousel. There's no line," Lily suggested as she pointed behind them.

Harvey turned to Josie, "You in?"

A smile grew wide on her face as she nodded in agreement. The two of them made their way over to the ride and took a seat on one of the benches.

"So, what should I know about my daughter?" he asked.

As the ride began to turn, Josie started talking about everything with him, from school to her passion for law, which her mother didn't approve of, but of course Harvey did. Though, he understood why her mother felt the way she did considering he was to blame for that. He confessed to her that he was the city's best closer around and this amazed her. All this time, she hadn't known about him and suddenly he had become her idol. Everything she wanted to be, he was.

"You know, I thought a lot about what you were like before coming here. All I knew was the name, but I wanted to know the man behind it," Josie proclaimed. "I had all these expectations and you have somehow managed to surpass every single one of them."

The words hit him like a train, causing his heart to skip a beat. "I'm sorry, I just can't believe I'm speaking with a teenager right now. You speak more eloquently than most of the lawyers I know."

"Ahh," Josie giggled. "Make sure you tell my mom that. She would be proud to know all those years of theatre camp didn't go to waste."

The reminder of Donna and the years of his daughter's life he had missed caused his heart to ache. His breath hitched as his eyes began to water. "If I would have known about you…" he drifted off, consumed with the guilt of that statement.

Josie placed her hand on his shoulder to comfort him, rubbing it with her thumb. "I'm here now, and I want you to know everything about me."

Oddly, she felt comfortable telling him anything and everything. She even told him about the girl from school she had been having problems with. "I don't even know what I did to her, but she just hates me for no reason."

"Girls suck," Harvey blurted out angrily. "Oh, ah, not you. You don't suck. I meant…" Harvey panicked, trying to find the right words. "I'm sorry this whole parenting thing is still new to me."

A smile grew on her face after hearing him talk about parenting. "It's okay. You are doing great so far. If I'm being completely honest, I haven't even told my mom about her, but for some reason with you it's different."

The sentiment melted his heart, feeling the connection form between them. This was exactly what they both needed… each other.

When the ride came to a stop, they got off and found Lily. As she was handing back their hot dogs, Harvey's phone went off. "Excuse me, I should take this," he announced, walking away from them. He didn't recognize the number, but he picked it up anyway.

"Hello," he answered.

"Hi, Harvey," the woman responded, her voice sending chills down his spine. He would recognize her voice anywhere… it was Donna.

"How did you–"

"I'm Donna. C'mon, Harvey has it really been that long that you've already forgotten what that means?" Donna asked playfully.

Even over the phone, she was captivating. "Seventeen years? I mean you forgot to tell me I had a daughter so it's definitely possible," he responded back angrily.

"That's not fair and you know it."

"What I know is, this morning I went out to get bagels and when I came back, I had a seventeen-year-old daughter waiting outside my door. Tell me, if she hadn't come and found me, would I ever have found out about her?" He was frustrated at this point, barely able to keep his temper in check. His pulse was racing as he rolled up his sleeves to relieve himself of the heat causing him to sweat.

"I didn't want you to hurt her, like you hurt me," she mumbled, her voice cracking from her emotions.

Hearing her like this, nearly broke his heart, but he still didn't understand. "Donna, I–" The sound of beeping from the other line cut him off. "I have to go. It's work calling."

He turned around to look at Josie and Lily laughing hysterically. The scene caused his smile to grow wide. "Josie is fine, and I've invited her to stay with me… if that's okay?" he added as an afterthought, knowing the significance of what he was asking. "I deserve to get to know my child. I've missed seventeen years, and I won't miss another day of her life."

There was a long pause before he heard her sigh. "Take care of her, please," Donna pleaded, the tone of her voice telling him how scared she truly was.

"You know I will," he promised. As the words left his mouth, the line went silent and once again, she was gone.

I hope you guys liked this chapter! Please leave a review and let me know what you thought. I love hearing all your feedback! xx