After the past chapters of angst and fluff, I still love writing Harvey with Mike and Louis. So a little filler here to get them all in one place and get them together for Christmas. Hoping to get that Xmas chapter up next.

(Text in italics are flashbacks)

'What time does your flight leave from LA?' Rachel asked as she rocked back in her chair while sat in her Seattle office. Rotating it around to look out towards the Space Needle, which was perfectly framed within her office window, she smiled at hearing his voice.

'Well, I'm just leaving the hotel now and heading over to Nick's office, so whatever it is he wants, I'm hoping it'll be done by six, as I need to be back at LAX for seven,' Mike replied, 'I take it you're missing me Mrs Ross?'

'What do you think?' She smiled.

Mike hadn't seen Nick Lazby for a number of weeks and was more than surprised when his CEO called him from his Los Angeles' office wanting to discuss a 'sensitive' matter face to face. Mike didn't want to push him about the case but was intrigued to find out what the owner of his firm wanted. Nick wasn't a lawyer, but as a successful hedge fund manger on Wall Street and in Century City, he also managed Specter Litt Ross' new Seattle office, taking on fortune five hundred companies as a side project alongside his other companies. He didn't have much communication with the New York office, much to Harvey's pleasure, who was never particularly fond of the guy but was grateful for the partial buy out after Jessica had left for Chicago.

'Mike!' Nick breezed into his office as Mike was sat waiting, scrolling through his cell phone. 'Sorry to keep you waiting, I'm hoping this won't take long but I asked you down here as it's more of a personal matter, shall we say?...' he began as he placed himself in the black leather chair opposite Mike. There was an air of arrogancy to Nick, which Mike had seen develop over the last few months. He seemed different to when they first met in New York when he'd proposed the job offer to him. At the beginning he seemed more interested in those cases, big or small, that were making a difference. But lately, Nick's emails and calls seemed to be more corporate based and 'doing favours' for friends. Mike took on the first few thinking he was just helping Nick out, but after, they started becoming more of a regular occurrence. The main reason he left New York was to make a difference, to head a large firm taking on large health and government agencies, helping those who really needed it. Yet he felt the last few cases Nick had passed his way seemed to be lining the pockets of investment bankers. Or as Nick would say, 'he's an old friend' or 'they're a friend of a friend and you're the best out there Mike.'

Nick handed him a black file, to which Mike by habit flipped it straight open and scanned the first page. Suddenly,

his eyes flashed back to the client's name at the forefront of the engagement letter.

'I want your take on this. Our investors are about to make a deal to buy out shares with the company in there,' he directed to the folder in Mike's hand. 'I'm asking you to take them on as our client, I know they're not a fortune five hundred, but..'

Mike cut him off, 'I'm not doing this. I can't.' Mike snapped the folder shut and dropped it back on Nick's desk in front of him. 'I appreciate you thinking of me to take this on, but they're not the sort of company I think we should represent. Specter Litt Ross has a long standing history with that company and none of it is good.'

Nick smiled and let out a long breath as he reached for the file.

'Do you really want to say no to me after everything I've done?' His smile had turned.

'What did you just say to me?' Mike

looked up a crease forming across his face.

'I'm saying, if you say no to this, I'll be sending this to the Federal Marshalls...' Nick slid another piece of paper of the table towards Mike who snatched it up and unfolded it.

'What the hell is this?' He skimmed the transaction letter in front of him, 'I didn't sign this, it has nothing to do me.' Mike dropped it back on the desk.

'Well, to me it looks like you've signed a copy of a release of funds letter to transfer twenty million dollars to an account in the Caymans,' Nick pointed again to Mike's signature.

'That's not my signature, I have never seen that letter in my life!' His voice raising higher, he wasn't expecting to be blackmailed into doing something that afternoon. Something of which he knew would be the last thing Harvey would want him to do.

'Oh and another thing,' Nick continued, 'it would be a shame for Donna to have to go through all that trial again wouldn't it? As I know the company in that folder there would love nothing more than sticking one to Harvey Specter.'

Mike swallowed, he felt the wave nausea ripple through his chest.

'So, do we have a deal?' Nick raised his eyebrow and a half smiled creaked over his face. 'If so, before flying back to Seattle, you need to get a signed affidavit from Paul Haynes from inside of the LA Federal Corrections Centre.'

'As in the guy who was framed by that company in there?' Mike pointed to the folder, anger etched on his face.

'I need you to make sure his story collaborates with what they're saying. Offer him a release deal.' Nick stood up out of his chair, convincing Mike was going to be harder than he thought.

'What? Are you Goddamn kidding me? There's no way in hell I'll represent Liberty Rail!' Mike shouted and turned to head out of the door.

Harvey, Louis and Mike stepped out of the car and into the entrance of the casino in downtown Miami. Harvey's face had changed considerably since Mike had told him about Liberty Rail and Nick forcing Mike to represent them. The likelihood of Donna being subpoenaed again was slim, but the fact that she was back in the firing line again by someone who was hell bent on getting revenge on the firm, didn't sit right with him - not after the past few weeks.

Pulling down on his shirt sleeves to subconsciously straighten his jacket, Harvey led the three men inside.

'So he's expecting us?' Harvey asked raising his eyebrow as they walked into the crowded lobby.

'He's expecting me and Louis, yes...' Mike answered stiffly while straightening the black bow tie in his reflection in the glass pane of the entrance. Mike and Louis had already been to meet with him earlier that day.

'Good,' Harvey continued to stride inside. 'I've always been good at gate crashing ...'

'Holy shit,' Nick laughed as he witnessed the two men enter his office. The bright Miami sun burned through the glass and split the light between him and the lawyers. 'Louis Litt? Really?' He gestured towards him and directed his question to Mike. 'And here's me thinking you were serious about settling our dispute and wanting to play hardball. What? No precious Harvey?'

Louis and Mike held their composure, Mike smiling slightly, knowing he had already pissed Nick off by not giving him Harvey to challenge. Louis didn't take offence, in fact he broke the silence.

'Listen here, you dirty sack of shit, you made Mike sign to Liberty Rail, knowing full Goddamn well that they were about to be investigated by the SEC, meaning everyone involved in their takeover was going to have a background check on all dealings, leading them straight to your shitty money transfer which you put in Mike's name,' Louis' face held his glare right on Nick's.

'See the funny thing about that Nick, is that I never did sign anything did I?' Mike interjected, 'So we can make all this go away or we could pass what we know onto the SEC and then rather than them subpoenaing Liberty Rail, they'll be subpoenaing all of your financial transfers, as you happen to already know, Louis here is quite down with finance crime and the shit we have on you will probably put you away for... what do you think Louis?' Mike turned to allow Louis to answer his set up line.

'I don't know Mike, maybe ten, fifteen years?' Louis then engaged in a dialogue with Mike as if Nick wasn't there. 'But that depends, see, we could do that and turn him in to the SEC, or we could get him to help us bring down Liberty Rail?'

'Are you kidding me?' Nick laughed, 'I'm a hedge fund banker, what I did to Mike has nothing to do with Liberty Rail, I just used that as leverage to keep him quiet about my transfer and get Paul Haynes out of prison to keep Liberty Rail on board!' Nick walked around his desk, folded his arms and stood in front of the pair. 'What do I really get out of this, as I know you're not going to the SEC as I'm sure Harvey wouldn't want his precious wife being caught up in his power struggle with the New York DA again would he?' He smirked, pacing towards his window which over looked the bustling Downtown Miami Beach.

'Well, we were hoping you'd ask that...' Mike raised his finger as he spoke his rehearsed line, 'Show him Louis.'

Louis took out a black folder and shunted it in front of Nick. After flipping it open and scanning the page, he looked up and smirked.

'Fine. 9pm, The Beldevere Casino,' his eyes lit up. 'I'll see you two there.'

As they approached the main bar, which circled around the top tier of the casino floor, Harvey turned to Mike.

'I take it that it never came up when you worked with him,about your previous endeavours with poker...' His jaw tight and eyes forward, scanning the room which had already began to fill. His first sight were the low rollers, roulettes and black jack tables for the walk ins or tourists with petty cash. Further back, he noticed the archway leading through to the high rollers' room, dark red sweeping curtains framed the tables that were guarded by two burly men with ear pieces and black suits.

'There,' Harvey pointed his finger over towards the security.

'Are we ready to do this?' Louis peered over Harvey's shoulder towards the direction they were heading.

'I sure as hell am, he's not going to get away with threatening Donna's life again.'

Rachel was sat by the pool with Donna and Shelia when her phone began to buzz. Immediately she hit the green button and answered.

'Mike! Thank God!' She breathed heavily, 'Is Harvey with you yet?'

We're on our way to meet him now, he's just checked into his hotel. We've been to speak with Nick.

'Please Mike, can you tell me the goddamn truth as to what the hell is going on?'

Rachel, it's complicated, I don't want to worry you. He's saying I signed his money transfer as a blackmail to take on Liberty Rail.

'Liberty Rail?' Rachel answered far too loudly which made Donna crack her glass down on the table upon hearing that name.

Shh, is Donna with you?

'Yes of course she is Mike, what the hell is going on?

We've got him on record saying he framed me but even if we go to he SEC with this he'll bring up Donna again to the DA.

Donna, not quite hearing Mike from Rachel's phone, got up off the sofa and strode over towards her friend and held out her hand.

'Give me the Goddamn phone!' Rachel hesitated but she knew Donna wasn't going to take no for an answer so placed it down into her awaiting palm with a sigh.

'Mike, Liberty Rail? Are you freaking kidding me? If that case gets looked at again I'm going to be ripped apart!'

You don't think I know that Donna? And everything you've been through over the past few weeks, I'm not going to let anything happen. We've got him. We just need Harvey. We're off to the Four Seasons now to let him know and we're going to sort this shit with Lazby once and for all. We just need to play a bit of poker first.

'Poker?' Donna didn't hide the rage in her voice, 'You're betting my life on a friggin game of poker? Please don't tell me Louis is playing. Goddamn it Mike, whatever you guys have planned, it better work! Please tell me you have something on him and you're only doing this to get something back?

Let's just say it'll be beneficial for all of us. If we win he's taking his investment out of Liberty Rail bringing it down and leaving it in bankruptcy. He knows if he goes back on that then we have it on the record that he tried to frame me.

'How?' Donna looked towards Rachel and smiled with a realisation 'Don't tell me. Louis. Did he take his XJS 5000?' She smiled, now understanding.

'Well, if it isn't the mighty Harvey Specter himself. Here's me thinking your protege here was a big grown boy now and didn't need Uncle Harvey's help?'

'Oh, I'm not here to help him Lazby. I'm just here to see your face when I whip your ass on this table. I'm always tempted across five states for a game or two...' Harvey's smirk spread so self righteously that it prickled Nick's patience.

'Now something tells me that you think you're going to win?' Nick smirked. 'See the thing is,' Nick rose from the seat he was sat at around the velvet topped table. 'The deal that we made,' he gestured between himself, Louis and Mike, 'Was that we'd play...'

Suddenly Louis interrupted from behind Harvey. 'But what I didn't mention is that, I can't play. Give me Mahjong, Chess or Battleships and I'll slap you silly six ways to Sunday, but I'm flat out of luck playing poker, so I forfeit my seat at the table to him...' he pointed towards Harvey, whose grin had now radiated further.

'Three Macallan 18s,' Harvey said to the table server, as he and Mike pulled up their chairs.

'And that would be a two pair...' Mike grinned as he flipped over his last card. 'I believe that beats your pair of aces.' He grinned as he scooped the pile of chips towards himself after nearly two hours of play.

'Feeling the heat Lazby? Do you want to forfeit and let's just settle this now?' Harvey asked, throwing his cards back in the middle. They knew they had Lazby, Mike had been counting cards before he had got in the game.

'What do you want?' He sighed, trying not to show he's admitting defeat.

'Drop Liberty Rail's stock and stay the hell away from bringing charges towards Donna again.' Louis growled across the table, it was the first time he had spoken since he'd given his seat at the table to Harvey; the renowned poker face.

'Why should I, when I have the SEC still breathing down my neck about my Cayman's transfer?'

'First of all, we have your verbal contract...' Harvey motioned back towards Louis. '...and confession that you set Mike up.'

'And how are you going to prove that?' Nick scoffed.

'Louis?' Harvey let his partner take the next move.

Louis reached inside his jacket pocket and pulled out his prized possession hitting the play button as he placed it down on the poker table. He let it play out, watching Nick's face drop as he realised what he had said.

'See, we needn't have played this game at all, but who am I to pass up the opportunity to take your money and to see your face when we played you that recording...' Harvey said as he stood up out of his seat, picking up his phone and wallet from the side and placing them back in his pocket. 'Oh and make sure this is the last time I ever have to hear your Goddamn name again or see your face. Stay away from Mike, stay away from my firm and most importantly, you threaten bringing Donna into anything again, it won't be just cards I'll thrash you with.'

'Oh, and here you go...Merry Christmas Nick.' Mike threw a single chip back down on the table, as the three of them walked past security and out of the room.