AUTHOR NOTE: Apologies for the update delay. I got a bit stuck with where to go next with this story as I could only foresee fluff, lol. I'm not good at fluff – I leave that to my superior fanfictioners! I'm better at the dramatics. OK, here is the next chapter, hinting at a new (dramatic) direction.

I'm on holiday for a week in 2x days time so there won't be another update for a bit. Sorry about that … but you know … there's life outside of Darveydom! (sometimes).

X X X

THE BEST PART OF ME

CHAPTER 16 – Reassurance

It had been four months since she'd seen him and as she waited in line to pass security, the butterflies appeared and a gigantic grin erupted all over her face. She'd missed him so much. She couldn't wait to see his cheeky smile, hear his voice and yes – if she was honest with herself – she was even looking forward to the teasing.

She knew he was going to drop some clangers. She was prepared. She'd thought of a few retorts herself.

As soon as she had her bag checked she asked if she was permitted to give him the present she'd brought for him. The security guard had said yes. She was delighted.

As she sat on the very uncomfortable plastic chairs of the visitor room she remembered the first time she'd visited him. He was in a bad way in the beginning and she'd been so worried about him. He didn't deserve this. She knew Harvey felt guilty, but she did too. She'd let him into that interview. She'd known from the first week that he was a fraud. She hadn't done or said anything about it either. How hadn't she realised it could end like this? It all seemed so unfair.

The doors opened and in they came.

Her insides flipped over in anticipation of seeing his sparkling blue eyes come through the door. Face after face appeared, but he came in last. He kept his head low, but his eyes still searched the room for whoever today's visitor was. She noticed the scab on his lip – a cut a few days old – and her heart sank. A purple bruise smudged the area over his left eyebrow. Her instincts were to grab hold of a prison guard and demand to know why he'd let her friend get hurt, but of course she didn't. She loved him as if he were her kid brother and she could be just as protective of him as Harvey.

He smiled widely as he approached her. He knew that she'd noticed the state of his face, but still he smiled. That was just who he was. It would take more than … than what? A punch in the face? Well, yes it would take more than a punch in the face for anyone to get the better of Mike Ross.

Donna stood to greet him and he rushed forward and drew her into a huge hug.

"Oh my god, look at you!" He beamed from ear to ear as he released her from his arms and looked at her growing bump. "Donna, you look amazing. This is amazing! How have you been? I mean Rachel's told me all about what's been happening, so I know it's been rough, but … wow … I am so happy to see you!"

She was smiling but there was sadness she couldn't hide from him in her eyes. Just a trace of it. "Mike, what's happened to you?"

"Me? … oh never mind that." He realised immediately what she was referring to. The latest in a list of altercations he'd had with his inmates. This one was because he'd apparently looked at someone the wrong way. He could see the worry in her face, so he lied. "Donna, seriously, I'm fine. Don't worry about it. Anyway …" He brought his head in closer to hers and lowered his voice "… you should see the state of the other guy."

Donna laughed but she wasn't buying it. "Who was it? Is he in this room now? Tell me, because if he is he'll have me to deal with."

Mike swallowed hard at the thought of her going to bat for him, but he smiled at her defending him, her red hair embodying her tiger-like courage. Everybody needed a Donna in their corner from time to time. "Uhm, Donna, you're pregnant. Not a great idea to be picking fights with hardened felons." He laughed as he spoke, but her worry was still there. He could tell. "Hey, it happens." He reached forward and took her hands in his. "Let's just say I have some protection in here, so you don't have to worry."

Donna's eyes ballooned. "Protection? From who?"

Mike gestured with his eyes to the left side of the room. "That guy," he said.

She turned her head and locked eyes with him. The man who had been gunning for Harvey since his time in the DA's office. The man who had backed Hardman. The man who had almost lost Harvey his place at the firm. Charles Forstman smirked at her. He knew who she was.

"You can't trust him," she whispered, averting her gaze from Forstman's and lowering her eyes.

Mike whispered back. "I know I can't." He squeezed her hand reassuringly. "Don't worry. I'm not going to do anything stupid, but if he wants to keep me safe in here – at the moment – then that's alright with me."

Donna nodded, but she felt uneasy. She hated Forstman. She wondered what he was planning.

"So come on, don't keep me waiting any longer. How have you been?"

"Oh you mean this," she pointed to her belly and laughed.

"Yeah, I do. I've been wondering for years when Mom and Dad were going to take the plunge."

There it was. Gag no.1. "Ok, I'll let you have that one." She narrowed her eyes at him, pretending to be offended. "I heard you gave Harvey some stick."

Mike laughed. "Damn right I did. I couldn't let that pass by. I could have gone at him all day. I've never seen him so worn down. He left here a different shade of colour than he'd arrived."

"He was in even more of a foul mood than usual when he got back to the office that day."

Mike chuckled again. "Ah, maybe I shouldn't have, but it was so funny."

"I can imagine," she said knowingly. "But, he is trying, you know?"

Their chatter evolved into an awkward silence. Donna thought back over the past few weeks. The stress, the worry, the fighting, the heartache. So much had happened and Mike hadn't been part of it. He couldn't know what they'd both been through.

"I was really worried about you when Rachel told me." Mike's blue eyes glistened with genuine concern as he reached forward and took hold of her hand again. "She said you'd been really sick."

"Oh yeah, god that was awful. I had like the worst morning sickness in the world. I couldn't even keep water down. I'm so thankful that's over with."

"Sounds pretty gross."

"It was. I ended up ruining six of Harvey's trashcans in the end and I practically lived in the bathroom for nearly two months. Then, I collapsed in front of Louis of all people."

"He told me. Poor Louis."

"Poor Louis?"

"I mean poor you … but … Louis would have been devastated. He adores you."

"He was my hero. He called an ambulance and came to the hospital with me. He's been sweet. Actually, he's been more than sweet with all of the baby stuff. He's really excited. He's already calling himself Uncle Louis."

Mike cleared his throat. "Yeah he's been here and he told me all about it. He's … uhm … more than excited about his impending uncle-dom. But how's Harvey taking that?"

"Not great. Seriously, this is my new battle. Harvey is threatening a restraining order when I have the baby. He thinks Louis is going to dress her in a cat Babygro and sneak her back to his house in that ridiculous cat carrier of his."

Mike gasped and instinctively drew his hands to his chest. "Her? You said 'her'?"

"I sure did," said Donna with a grin.

"Is it …?"

"Yep."

Mike ran his hand through his hair chuckling. "Donna, that's great. A little girl. Oh my god Harvey is going to love her so much."

"Yeah, I know he will." She beamed as she remembered how in love with his daughter he was already. Ever since they had the scan and received the news he'd been talking about taking her to ballet recitals and pony riding clubs. It was the epitome of sweet. "Oh, I have something for you," she said remembering her gift. She picked up her bag and picked out the little card holding the baby's latest scan image. She opened up the card and placed the scan in front of him. "There she is."

Mike beamed as he took hold of the card. "I can keep this?" Donna nodded. "Wow, thank you." His eyes glazed over as he looked at the monochrome profile of his two best friends' baby. "This is amazing. I just …"

Donna sensed his mood shift as his eyes watered. "What is it, sweetheart?"

He sighed deeply and scrunched up his nose to stop the tears from falling. "I wish I was there. I miss you all."

Donna leaned forward and rested her hand on his arm as he kept tight hold of the picture. "I know you do. I wish I'd visited you more often. I'm sorry …"

Mike sniffed. "No, no, you've had enough to deal with. You've been sick and … uhm … dealing with Harvey. I didn't expect you to be here. I understand and it's fine. I'm not short of visitors. I see Rachel every few days. Then, Harvey, Harold, Jimmy … oh and Louis have all been. Hey, even Katrina Bennet came to seem me a couple of weeks ago."

"That's great, Mike."

"Yeah, I know … and I'll be out of here in no time. I literally can't wait to see Harvey as a dad. That's going to be awesome." He practically hugged the scan photo with his fingertips, as he spoke, his eyes sparking with joy. "I'm so happy for the both of you."

"Thanks Mike. It's been a bit of a rough ride, but we're getting there."

"Yeah, I could have imagined that even if Rachel hadn't told me. Harvey took the news badly to begin with, huh?"

"I wouldn't say badly. I'd say 'strangely'."

Her choice of words made immediate sense to him. Harvey's way of coping with life-changing events was always going to be unpredictable. "And how is he now?"

"He's trying. He … uhm … and don't laugh I mean it! …" She caught his expression revert back to mischief. "Okay, he wants us to make a go of things. You know … together."

"He does?" Mike looked scared. "Wow. In a kind of doing-the-right-thing way? Wait a minute … oh no … what's next? Does your dad have a shotgun?"

"He says he's in love with me."

The mischief disappeared immediately from Mike's face. This was serious. He felt like an immature baby. There was a time for teasing and a time for being a friend. "It must have taken a lot for him to admit that."

Donna gulped. Her eyes conveyed the strength of her guilt. She looked down at the table sheepishly, running her finger down a crack in the plastic veneer which looked like a thunderbolt. "It did." She gulped again. "And I all but destroyed him."

Mike wasn't certain he wanted to know the ins and outs of what had happened. He felt like he was about to become privy to some very private pieces of information. But he realised he was the closest to both Donna and Harvey and probably the only one who could act as confidante to both of them. If Donna wanted to open up to him, then he'd do his best to help. "What happened?" he asked gently.

"I got scared. Jesus, you know what he's like Mike. All the years I've known him he's been running from who he is and how he feels. I didn't believe he could do it and my not believing in him … well it almost broke him."

Mike sighed, his face baring the grief he'd have experienced if he'd been there for them in person through it all. "He needs you."

There was that word again. 'Need'. Donna bristled. "I don't want him to throw his cap into the ring for me because he needs me, Mike. I want him to want me for who I am, not what I do with his goddamn calendar."

Mike interjected quickly. "Donna, that isn't what I meant. I mean he can't live without you. You must know that. Gretchen did his calendar fine, so this isn't about work. He needs you. It's like you're a part of him … the best part of him."

It was good to hear someone else say what she hoped was the truth. She allowed her posture to relax as the wave of reassurance washed over her. "I'm trying to make it up to him."

"I'm sure you don't need to. He'll understand. Sometimes people just can't see what's under their noses. You've known and accepted him more than anybody else he's ever tried to have a relationship with. He trusts you and of course he loves you. We all saw that. We all knew who you were to him. It just took him that little while longer to realise ..." Mike cleared his throat and his eyes twinkled with mischief again. "… because he's a bit of a dick."

Donna laughed out loud. "Thanks Mike."

"Now promise me something."

"Name it," she said with a half-moon grin.

"Visit me more often. I've missed you."

She agreed – how couldn't she? They chatted away for the rest of their hour. Mike talked about some of his inmate friends and how's he's helping them with free legal advice. He seemed so enthusiastic about the position he was in, but that was Mike all over. He was an idealist. He needed everything in his world to be right. He was also an optimist. He'd almost served a quarter of his sentence – or maybe even half of it if he was let out early on good behaviour. He wasn't going to pine away all of those months – not when he could put his situation to good use and help people.

Donna hadn't paid much attention to Forstman during their conversation. In fact, it wasn't until the guard announced the end of visitor time that she remembered he was there – at the far side of the room. At that moment she turned and met his gaze again. He was seated casually, his arms flung over the back of the chair. His legs crossed giving off a nonchalant posture that told the world he owned the place. Knowing him, he probably did own the place. She looked away from him as quick as she could. There was something about that man which made her feel so uneasy.

She had been sitting for an hour and her ass felt like it had died. She straightened in the seat, stretching out her back which jolted, making her yelp.

"Are you okay?" asked Mike as he stood to leave the room.

"Yeah, yeah," she said ushering him away. "Just a bit stiff thanks to junior."

"Is that what Harvey said that night when you two …"

"Get back to your cell, Dead Man Walking!"

"Fine, I deserved that." He chuckled as he walked to the door gripping the baby scan photo tightly in his hands. He slotted into position between a couple of inmates and winked at her as he walked through the doors.

She picked up her bag and got ready to be told she could leave when Forstman came up behind her, leaning in closely and whispering into her ear. "Pass my deepest congratulations onto Harvey, won't you?"

Donna shuddered as he brushed past her and joined the back of the line. He looked back and smirked in that unsettling way of his. He made her feel sick. She knew he was up to something and she was frightened. The last thing they needed was yet another threat in their lives.

X X X

Charles Forstman had a way of getting everything he wanted inside Danbury for one single reason. Money. It wasn't brawn or brains that got you ahead inside. It was money. Money, after all, could buy you all the brawn you needed and all the brain you didn't have. Fortunately for Forstman he already had more than his fair share of brain, so after buying the brawn in all the months previous to Mike's incarceration he had already risen to the top of the tree.

His position awarded privileges. He had contacts on the outside. He still spoke to his business associates daily. Today wasn't unusual. He had had visitation from one of his CEOs. They had talked. They had formulated a plan. The plan had changed – slightly – when he had realised the life of the one person in the world who he hated more than any other had taken an upswing. How hadn't he heard about Harvey Specter becoming a father? The ground which he still kept his ear almost surgically attached to had failed to bring him that news.

Never mind. There was still time to manoeuvre things.

He picked up the phone in the private room he always went to and he called the person who was all set to make things happen.

"I have news on Harvey Specter," he said through the black mouthpiece of the telephone. "We've been thinking about this the wrong way. Sure, we can get to him by taking away his firm or his goddamn legal licence, but if you want the best way to get to him – the sure-fire way to break the bastard, then we've been barking up the wrong tree from day one." He smiled as he listened to the eagerness of his associate sitting in his New Jersey office, taking the telephone call. "The best way to get to him is through the one person in the world he truly loves."