Harvey and Donna swayed to the music, cheek to cheek. Neither one could quite believe they were here together, dancing as husband and wife, yet it was exactly where they were meant to be.
"What are you thinking about?" Donna whispered into Harvey's ear. Her right hand snaked up the back of his neck and her fingers played at his hairline, sending shivers down his spine.
Harvey pulled back to look his wife in the eye. "How lucky I am that you said yes," he said, his eyes twinkling. He couldn't stop smiling; he doubted he could even if he wanted to stop.
"With a proposal like that, how could I say no?" she teased. "You really are the best closer in the city, you know."
Harvey chuckled. Thinking suddenly how that was no longer going to be true, his smile softened and became a little wistful. He thought about all the years of energy he had spent closing clients, when he really should have focused all his energy on her. "I'm sorry it took me so long," he repeated for what felt like the hundredth time. "Thank you for waiting for me."
Even though he was positively beaming, Donna saw the flicker of doubt flash in his eyes. "I would've waited for you forever," she admitted softly.
His lips met hers in a long, tender kiss as the music came to an end. The guests around them applauded, reminding the couple that they were not alone. A particularly loud whistle in the form of Mike Ross greeted them as they broke apart. He stepped out onto the dance floor and held out his arms.
"I know you want to sneak out of here to go see Louis, but first, I think I deserve a dance with the beautiful bride," he said.
Harvey grinned at his would-be best man and let him take Donna's hand. He looked around the crowd, searching for a particular blonde. He spotted her and headed that direction. His eyes met Samantha's and he winked before turning to Katrina and offering his hand. The shock on her face was almost palpable. Harvey tilted his head as if to say, it's okay, I won't bite. Finally, with a nudge from Samantha, Katrina accepted Harvey's hand and followed him onto the dance floor.
"Wow, I can't believe he actually did it," Mike said as Donna stepped into his embrace.
Donna chuckled. "What, that Harvey got married?" she asked.
Mike's eyes grew wider. "Not only did he get married, but he had a ring AND proposed to you in public, then wrote the perfect vows and declared his love for you in front of a room of mostly strangers," he listed, his voice dripping with disbelief. "I wouldn't have believed it if I hadn't seen it with my own eyes."
Donna grinned. "Well, I suppose we have you to thank for that."
Mike furrowed his brows in confusion. "What did I do?"
"I never thanked you for encouraging me to tell Harvey how I feel about him," Donna replied.
"Except it completely backfired and almost resulted in you having to leave the firm!" Mike exclaimed. He remembered how upset Harvey had been when he found out that Mike had pushed Donna into confessing her feelings, which instead led to her kissing him.
Donna squeezed his shoulder, trying to reassure him that he did nothing wrong. "But it planted the seed," she explained. At his still-confused expression, she continued. "Mike, I'm going to tell you something I never told anyone, not even Rachel..." She paused.
"Harvey kissed me back."
Mike let her words sink in. As far as he knew, Donna had kissed him, they got into a huge fight, and both Donna and Harvey denied feeling anything. But now...
"He what?"
Donna closed her eyes and sighed. "I was sitting there in my office, thinking about what you said, and then Louis came in, talking about Shiela being his soulmate...and then Harvey came in and I kissed him. At first, nothing happened, he was in complete shock, but then I felt him relax and he started to kiss me back, and in that split second I knew I had to break it off before..."
"Before Harvey became the one thing he hated more than anything: a cheater," Mike finished. Harvey's intense anger after the kiss was starting to make sense. Harvey had not been angry at Donna so much as he had been angry with himself.
Donna nodded. "I couldn't do that to him. Only it turns out he felt that way anyway," she explained, remembering their argument word for word. She would never forget the hurt in his eyes and in his voice. When you add guilt on top of Harvey's sense of loyalty..."But it still doesn't change the fact that he wanted to kiss me back. And, looking back, the way things were going, if I hadn't done what I did, he might be married to Paula now, not me."
Mike grimmaced, thinking what a terrible match Paula had been for Harvey. "Not a chance," he replied. "He would have come around eventually." Donna shrugged, not knowing if Harvey would have. "And if he didn't, I would've kicked his ass."
Donna laughed. The idea of Mike actually kicking anyone's ass, let alone Harvey's, was always a highly amusing thought. "Okay, easy there Robin," she teased.
Mike shook his head in mock distress. "I wouldn't be so quick to snark," he advised. "Rachel's gonna be pissed that you did this without her." At Donna's horrified expression, he grinned. "Don't worry - Gretchen recorded the whole thing on her phone, including Robert's announcement about Louis' newborn daughter. Not to mention, there was probably a professional photographer lurking around."
Donna smiled and sighed in relief. She would have to remember to thank Gretchen for saving her from her best friend's complete wrath. Still, if she and Harvey decided to get married again in front of their families, they would make sure that Rachel could be there the second time around.
"Thank you, Mike. For everything," she said sincerely. For offering Harvey and I a fresh start, a chance to build a new life together.
"You're welcome, Donna," he replied with equal sincerity. "I am so happy for you, and especially for Harvey."
"Why?"
Mike smiled. "Because you're the best thing that ever happened to him, and he finally knows it."
Donna grinned, recalling Louis saying the exact words to her. She wrapped her arms around Mike in a tight hug, giving him a kiss on the cheek. He hugged her back, kissing her on the temple. "See you in a couple of weeks."
"I'm not very good at this," Katrina protested nervously as she followed Harvey onto the dance floor.
"Well, then that makes two of us," Harvey said, smiling down at the former Senior Partner, trying to calm her nerves. At her continued look of confusion, he added, "Apologizing has never been my strong suit, though I find myself doing it more and more often these days."
Out of pure shock, Katrina began to relax. Although it was highly unlikely that Harvey would have yelled at her again, she had never expected to get an apology directly from him. She looked up and met his gaze openly, waiting for him to continue.
"I'm sorry, Katrina," he began sincerely. "I never should have taken my frustrations with Faye out on you."
"Harvey, your mother had just died, and Mike was -"
Harvey shook his head and interrupted her. "That's no excuse. You were only trying to help, and if I hadn't yelled at you, you never would have felt the need to confess to Faye and would still have a job. That's on me, not on you." Katrina noddded slowly, helping him to ease the burden he clearly felt. "Besides, without you, we never could have gotten rid of Faye once and for all, and I know I, for one, will never forget that."
Katrina let the significance of his words sink in. While Harvey had originally given her the job at Pearson Hardman, she had primarily observed him from a distance over the years. She knew him only as arrogant and selfish; but today, he was humble and remorseful. She suspected that Donna had a little something to do with that, as well as Mike. She glanced over at the pair dancing next to them and sent them a silent "thank you." She then looked back at Harvey and smiled.
"I accept your apology," she said graciously, bowing her head. "And you're welcome," she added teasingly, acknowledging his implicit thanks.
Harvey grinned back. "The truth is, we could use more lawyers like you," he added. "Now that Faye is gone, I hope you'll consider returning to the firm."
"Thanks, Harvey, I'll think about it." She paused, then opted to go with what her gut was telling her. "But, I'll wait to decide until I get the offer from Louis."
It was Harvey's turn to be confused. "After all, you're leaving the firm," Katrina continued matter-of-factly.
Harvey stared down at her for a moment with professional reverence. He always knew she was smarter than most people gave her credit for, and now he was witnessing her shrewdness firsthand. He realized there was no point in denying it; the truth was going to come out sooner or later. "How did you know?" he conceded.
Katrina tilted her head. "Come on, Harvey, Faye was never going to fold under my fake threat of testifying against her. She knows that I would actually never go through with it, no matter what you and Louis said or did. The only thing that was ever going to make her happy was you leaving by whatever means possible."
"Like I said," Harvey repeated, smiling, "the firm could use more lawyers like you."
"Thank you, Harvey," Katrina replied, blushing slightly.
The two finished out the dance in silence, each with their own thoughts. As the music ended, Harvey offered her his hand. "Best of luck to you, Katrina," he said sincerely. To his surprise, she stood on her toes, placed her hands on his upper arms, and whispered into his ear, "Good luck in Seattle," before giving him a soft kiss on the cheek. In a flash, she was gone.
"So much for moving on," Alex deadpanned, taking Donna into his arms as the next song began to play. Mike walked away, phone in hand, searching for his next dance partner.
Donna smiled. "What can I say," she responded, glancing across the floor at Harvey, "there's something completely irresistible about the man."
Alex laughed. "Well, I can't say that I know what you mean, but I'm happy for you," he joked.
"You, know, I've been wondering something," Donna said, now thinking about the night Alex came into her office to reassure her about Harvey's ethics hearing. "Why did you tell me that story about you and Rosalie? And what I mean is, how did you know?"
Alex didn't hesitate before answering. "Donna, I've known Harvey a long time. I've never known him to treat anyone with such reverence as he does you. And once I came to work at the firm, it didn't take me long to see that you would go to any lengths to protect him. Watching the two of you together, it quickly became clear to me that the two of you have feelings for each other that go way beyond the professional."
Donna closed her eyes and shook her head, feeling slightly mortified that it had been so obvious when she had worked so hard to hide her feelings for Harvey all these years. "And to think: I once wanted to become an actress..."
Alex chuckled. "What about you?" he asked, wondering aloud what everyone had always wondered but never had the courage to ask. "When did you know?"
"That Harvey was the one?" Donna finished his question, tilting her head. She glanced over again at the man she now called her husband. He was now having what looked like a serious conversation with Samantha on the dance floor. Donna sighed. "Harvey and I slept together once, a long time ago," she began.
Alex raised his eyebrows in surprise. "I didn't know that."
"I used to have this rule: never get romantically involved with someone you work with," she continued. "The day he quit the D.A.'s office, Harvey came to my apartment to tell me. I told him I had also quit, and one thing led to another...," Donna trailed off, letting Alex figure out the rest. "The next morning, he was gone and I thought that might be it, that I might never see him again... But then, a couple of days later, he called and asked me to meet him and suddenly...I thought maybe he wanted to see me again, to give a relationship a try..."
"And instead, he offered you a job," Alex finished, realizing where the story was headed.
Donna sighed again, nodding. "I remember sitting at that table, listening to him talk about how he didn't want to lose me, and how he didn't want to find out what kind of lawyer he would be without me...and that's when I knew..." She took a deep breath and finished, "I was hopelessly, irretrievably in love with him...and always will be."
"Yet, you took the job anyway," Alex said, smiling sadly, thinking about how many years she had spent waiting for him. They had almost all been in vain.
"I realized he wasn't ready for a serious relationship," Donna explained. "But, I also realized that him asking me to work with him was his way of keeping me in his life, and I knew I wasn't ready to lose him either. So...I settled for second best."
Alex nodded to show his understanding. "Well, I have to say, after the whole thing with Daniel Hardman, I never imagined you two would end up here," he admitted.
"To be honest, neither did I," Donna conceded with a laugh. "I thought for sure that no matter the outcome of that hearing, Harvey might never speak to me again. If he had been disbarred..." She trailed off, not wanting to think about what would have happened if he had. Would he still have shown up at her door?
"Like I said, I'm happy for you. And for Harvey," Alex added.
Donna smiled and rolled her eyes, thinking about what both Louis and Mike had said. "Let me guess: 'because I'm the best thing that's ever happened to him'?"
"No, Donna," Alex gently scolded. "Love is not a one-way street. You wouldn't be with him if he wasn't a good man; if he didn't make you feel special and loved. Anyone can see from the way he looks at you that he adores you and would do anything to make you happy," he explained. "So, the way I see it, you and Harvey are the best thing that's ever happened to each other."
Donna beamed at him, her eyes tearing up. Everyone was always saying how good she was for Harvey, but no one had ever told her that Harvey was good for her. It was wonderful to hear someone else recognize what she had always known: Harvey was a good man worthy of her love.
"Thanks, Alex," she whispered.
"No, Donna, thank you," he replied earnestly. "For everything you've done for the firm all these years. It's going to be hard keeping Louis and Samantha in line without you."
Donna tilted her head in surprise. She was about to ask how he knew, but as he had shown her several times already, Alex had great intuition. Instead, she smiled wistfully and patted him on the shoulder. "I think you and Katrina will do just fine. Easier to keep those two in line than Harvey," she teased.
"On second thought," he conceded, "we've got it much better than you."
Donna grinned. "I'm going to miss everyone," she admitted.
Alex returned her grin. "If things don't work out in Seattle, you know you will always have a home here."
"We know," Donna replied, her eyes tearing up again. She drew him into a hug and kissed him on the cheek.
"Wow," he said as she pulled away. "Two favors and a kiss from Donna Paulsen?" Alex smiled and winked at her. "Now I can die a happy man."
Donna laughed and squeezed his arm. "Don't ever change, Alex."
"I won't if you don't," he replied. "Now get over there and dance with your husband."
Harvey was still staring, stunned, as Katrina disappeared into the crowd. He barely noticed Samantha walk up to him until she spoke, bringing him out of his daze.
"That must've been one hell of an apology!" she exclaimed, a look of amusement on her face.
Harvey shrugged and grinned back. "I'm getting pretty good at them," he said sheepishly. He looked around and saw that Donna was dancing with Alex, and Mike was dragging Katrina back onto the floor. Other guests were slowly joining them as the music continued to play. Harvey held out his hand, and Samantha took it.
They started to dance and Harvey's smile slowly faded. "Speaking of apologies, I owe you one for what happened in your trial." Before Samantha could interrupt, he rushed to finish. "Faye put us into a corner and we had no other choice, but Louis didn't have to be so cruel to you on the stand."
"Yes he did," Samantha admitted. "If he hadn't, Faye would have thought you were throwing the case. Even though I couldn't appreciate it at the time, I know he was only doing his job."
Harvey knew she was right. "Still..." He felt the need to explain more, but couldn't find the words. Samantha beat him to the punch.
"As long as we're throwing around apologies...I wanted to thank you, Harvey."
Harvey tilted his head, confused. "How is thanking me an apology?"
"It's not," Samantha said, chuckling at her poor choice of words. "But I never thanked you for coming with me to meet my birth father. Even after I screwed up with Mike and you said you didn't trust me anymore, you still tried to save my job. Then you spent two days in a car with me - not many people would have done that."
Harvey could feel his face flushing with embarrassment. He had always had trouble accepting praise that wasn't about his negotiating skills. It wasn't that he was afraid to appear weak; he had never felt worthy of such compliments about his character. "Well, I kind of screwed up that road trip..." he responded, trying to deflect.
"Yeah, you did," Samantha chuckled. "But you got me there and that's what counts. Seriously, Harvey, that was a really sweet thing for you to do, coming with me." She looked at him square in the eye, her face filled with gratitude. "I'll never forget it."
"It was good for me, too," he admitted. "Taking that journey with you, watching you struggle for understanding and forgiveness...it made me realize that no matter my mom's shortcomings, she was always faithful to me, and to Marcus. I always thought that she was the one who tore apart our family, but she was also the one who held us together."
Samantha smiled grimly. "Funny, that's what I've been thinking about you," she remarked, "and why I've decided to forgive you for leaving us."
Harvey couldn't believe his ears. Her, too? "Come on, Harvey, it doesn't take a Harvard-educated lawyer to figure out what you did to make Faye leave," Samantha continued, seeing the look of surprise on his face. "She never cared about me, or Katrina, or Louis' title: getting rid of you was always her endgame," she observed. "There's just one thing I need to know...
"After everything we've been through, all the times you could have made sacrifices - why now? Why this?"
Harvey thought for a moment before answering. He had been ready for this question from Louis, who he knew would try to talk him out of resigning. But Samantha was not Louis.
"I know it sounds like a cliche, but after my mom died, a lot of things took on a new perspective. Things that used to be important suddenly seemed less so, and things I never thought I wanted...," he trailed off and took a deep breath. "The point is, for the first time in my life, I decided not to let others take the fall for my mistakes when I had the power to stop it," he explained. "Faye was never going to give in to extortion, and I knew it. I couldn't let all of you risk everything when I held the key to end it all without anyone else being harmed."
Samantha nodded. She was impressed by his self-awareness and appreciated the gravity of his sacrifice. It was why she had chosen to be sad, rather than angry with him. She had only known Harvey a short time, but she knew it was something he had to do, not just for his friends, but to give his soul some peace. It was finally time he released all the guilt he had bottled up inside for so long.
"I understand all of that, Harvey," she conceded, "it's just..." Samantha sighed. "I finally found somewhere that I feel like I belong - a real family - and now it feels like it's all falling apart." She paused, her throat tightening. "Like I'm losing Robert all over again."
Harvey smiled and placed his hand on her shoulder. "That's the thing about family, Samantha," he consoled. "Friends, colleagues...they all come and go. We may not be in the office anymore, or even in the city, but Donna and I will always be there when you need us. You will always be part of our family, and family is forever."
Samantha returned Harvey's smile even as she tried to hold back tears. Her eyes searched his for any trace of regret, but his mind was made up and she knew she was in no position to try and change it. Seeing her distress, Harvey suddenly felt sad about leaving the firm, and everyone, behind. He swallowed hard and pulled her into a hug.
"I'm going to miss you, Harvey," Samantha whispered into his ear.
Harvey chuckled to himself. He never thought he would hear those words come out of her mouth, let alone his own.
"I'm going to miss you, too," he echoed, patting her on the back. Suddenly feeling like the big brother she never had, Harvey reached up and stroked her hair, pressing a kiss to her temple.
Samantha finally pulled away. "You take good care of that amazing wife of yours," she said, stepping out of his arms and blinking back the tears that had formed in her eyes.
Harvey took her both of her hands in his and squeezed, blinking back tears of his own. His lips curled up into a smile as he thought about the adventure he and Donna were about to embark on in the coming weeks. "I will," he promised.
As Samantha hurried away, Harvey turned and scanned the crowd for Donna. He watched her kiss Alex on the cheek and then laugh at something he said. She always looked beautiful, but today, she was positively radiant. Just watching her calmed him and a sense of peace washed over him. Harvey took a deep breath and swallowed the rest of the sadness he had felt saying goodbye to Samantha. Any uncertainty he had about moving to Seattle washed away as he gazed at his new wife. No matter what the future had in store for them, they would face it together, and that was all he needed to know.
Donna caught Harvey's eye and started to cross the dance floor where to he stood watching her. He always looked handsome in a tuxedo, but tonight, there was something different about his smile, his demeanor. Perhaps it was the silver band now resting at home on his left ring finger. As she got closer to him, he stretched out his arms invitingly. She returned his grin and slipped back into Harvey's embrace as Elvis began crooning slowly over the speakers.
"Is there something between you and Alex I need to know about?" he teased as he drew her close, wrapping both of his arms around her waist.
Donna rested her hands on Harvey's chest and grinned even bigger, her eyes sparkling. "I could say the same thing about you," she teased back. "That must have been some apology to Katrina," she observed.
"How did you know?" he replied softly, already knowing the answer. He never tired of hearing her response.
Donna tilted her head and gave him the same suggestive look she gave him the day they met. "The same way I always know: I'm Donna."
Harvey smiled. He, of all people, knew just how 'Donna' she could be. "It was long overdue," he admitted. "What about you? Did you have a nice chat with Alex and Mike?"
"I did," Donna replied shortly.
It was clear that she was not inclined to elaborate on the two conversations. Neither was Harvey feeling particularly keen to talk about the conversation he had with Samantha. Today, it felt like they had all the time in the world to talk about stuff like that. There was another, more pressing issue that they needed to address before they could truly relax.
"You realize they've all figured out that we're leaving," he observed.
"It sure appears that way," she replied, sighing. "And if so, then you know what that means."
Harvey nodded, loosening his hold on her waist. "We need to tell Louis before someone else does," he said reluctantly, finishing his wife's thought. "If you're ready, we can go see him now."
Donna looked over Harvey's shoulder at the crowd of their friends and colleagues dancing around them. Mike and Samantha, Alex and Katrina, Robert and Gretchen. They all seemed to be enjoying a much needed evening of fun and lightheartedness. She thought about the difficult few weeks and months she and Harvey were about to embark on as they started the new chapter of their lives together. Donna wanted to savor this moment of peace as long as she could.
"And we will, soon," she agreed, mirroring the tone in which Harvey had said the same words. She snaked her arms around his neck, drawing Harvey close again. She gazed deeply into his eyes and saw the love she felt reflected in them. She knew that no matter what the days and weeks ahead would bring, they would conquer it all together, just as they always had.
"Right now, I want to dance with my husband."