Darling Little LeeLee (Doctor Darling’s Clinic #2)

Epilogue

EPILOGUE

Everleigh

Nerves wrung my tummy and I swallowed back the bile threatening to rise. Leo and I were sitting on the hard bench outside the courtroom with Alexandria, Ronnie’s girlfriend. Lexa— her Little, and the nickname she preferred to be called—had been banned. Not by the judge or anything, but neither she or I would have been able to keep our mouths shut. It was better for everyone if we stayed occupied. We held hands offering comfort and occasionally doodling in a notebook. We’d played tic-tac-toe and other games that required nothing more than a pen and paper or our hands.

Lexa was also really creative and used her artistic side to help us find other ways to pass the time. My favorite part had been when she drew out a connect-the-dots picture for me. It was a cute bunny rabbit, tiny, but fun all the same.

Leo had been feeding us a supply of snacks and drinks so that we wouldn’t spiral. As the hours ticked by, we’d both grown restless.

Lexa stood up. “He’s in cuffs. I just know it. They’re gonna drag him out to jail. He’s not meant for prison–”

“Shhhh, Lexa. That’s not going to happen.” Leo patted her shoulder until she sat again.

“But Ronnie won’t be okay in jail. They’ll probably make him be in isolation ‘cause otherwise he’d just be healing everybody he meets and suddenly–”

“Alexandria,” Leo said sternly. “Even if the lawsuit does not swing in our favor, no one is going to jail. That’s not how lawsuits work. Drink your juice.”

Lexa grumbled and leaned her head on my shoulder, sipping from her juice pouch. We’d both been in and out of our Little headspaces since we arrived.

Part of it for me was the relaxation aspect. If I was Little, I certainly didn’t care about the outcome of a serious court matter. But, it was hard to stay in that space.

I rubbed my friend’s head, telling her to look at the crazy artwork hanging all through the hallway. We people-watched for a while, making up stories about what they were doing and why they were there.

Leo kissed the crown of my head and I leaned on him. The three of us probably looked like dominoes that didn’t fall all the way, but I felt very loved. Soothing Lexa came naturally to me, mostly because we’d originally met when she was a guest but we’d become fast friends.

“Didn’t you see all the people who are here today? I stopped counting at fifty. Some of them moved away years ago! They are all supporting our favorite doctor,” I said sweetly.

“I thought I was your favorite doctor,” Leo teased.

“Silly! You’re both my favorite. Anyhow, people came from all over. Dr. Gregory Darling came up from Florida! He’s going to fly us all down on his private jet sometime. Won’t that be fun?”

“If Ronnie’s not in jail!” Lexa brushed away tears.

“No one is going to jail,” Leo repeated gently.

“I’m sorry, Leo. I know what you said. And you’re right, Everleigh. I am looking forward to a real vacation. I don’t love flying, but a private jet sounds really fun.”

“We can go anywhere! A beach! Or maybe the mountains? No, we should go to an amusement park. We can be princesses!”

“I know, I know,” she said, groaning. “I wanna be a princess with you! Princess Leelee and Princess Lexa sounds so fun. But, Ronnie has been so incredibly stressed. He hasn’t been in the best place to hear about our plans.”

“You don’t have to take on his stress, sweetheart.” Leo patted her head.

She nodded and we relaxed again, as much as you could on a wooden bench outside a courtroom.

The doors finally opened and people filed out. All three of us stood up but it seemed like Ronnie was the last one to exit. He strode over to us, his face completely neutral. Lexa and I shared a look as he reached us. He kissed her on the forehead, but still his face didn’t give anything away.

“What’s the outcome?” Alexandria prompted.

“Don’t keep us in suspense.” I tapped my foot impatiently.

He rubbed a hand across his mouth. “Well–”

Oh no ! If he was hesitating, it was bad.

Shit .

It couldn’t have gone well or he would have told us right away. But then he looked over at me and his eyes sparkled in amusement.

“Oh! You’re bluffing!” I smacked his arms playfully and Lexa joined in. He laughed, tickling our sides until we stopped. Leo beamed, wrapping an arm around me and pulling me against him.

“Everything worked in our favor,” Ronnie began. “We don’t have to return the donation and the community stepped up. So many people spoke about their experiences. Two representatives from the original family who started the clinic gave very moving speeches on what the vision had been back in the 1950s. I have no idea how they knew about it because they live out of state and haven’t been here in years. Still, it was an incredible show of support.”

“I wish I had been inside the courtroom,” I said with a huff.

“It was better that you weren’t,” Leo said gently. “You were agitated out here. Until you heard the judgment you would have been going crazy.”

“You’re right. Thanks for keeping me calm and relaxed instead of spiraling.”

“You’re welcome, little lionheart.”

Ronnie wrapped his arm around Alexandria. “Let’s go get lunch. It’s on me.”

We gathered our belongings and headed out of the courthouse while Ronnie and Leo teased each other like brothers.

“I’m so happy the stress lines in your forehead have disappeared,” Leo said, grinning.

“Stress lines. Don’t you start,” Ronnie warned.

“Does that mean I can order surf and turf?” Leo said, still teasing as he changed the subject back to lunch.

“You can order whatever you want, man. Nothing is going to get me in a bad mood today. Besides, we have a carnival to plan. I’d love to talk about it.”

“What did you say?” I skidded to a halt.

“A carnival,” Ronnie confirmed.

“Eek! You’re letting me do that?”

Both Ronnie and my Daddy nodded.

I grabbed Lexa’s hands and we bounced on our feet. “You totally have to help me, Lexa. We can do games and face painting and yummy food....”

“And maybe one of those traveling petting zoos? So many of us have connections. Plus prizes!” Lexa giggled.

“Oh my gosh. This is the best,” I said, my heart a million times lighter than when we had gotten into the car this morning. Leo ushered Lexa and I into the backseat while he and Ronnie sat in the front.

“Thank you, Ronnie. Thank you, Daddy,” I said happily.

“You’re welcome,” they answered in unison.

“I’m so happy right now.”

“So am I, little lionheart.” Leo grinned and started the car.

As we pulled away from the courthouse, I realized we were a part of something way bigger than just a clinic. We had an entire community of support and love. And I was lucky enough to be part of it all.

The End