Title: Chance Meetings

Author: Razorbackgal0225

Rating: PG-13-A little language, but that's all.

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters, laws or situations from Suits, but I sure wish I did. Anything you don't recognize is mine.

Author's Note: So just in case anyone doesn't figure it out, I have completely made up everything work-related in this story. While I do have an accounting degree, I haven't really used it in a long time, so all I'm doing is throwing in words that I remember from class. Also, I have no idea what a lawyer actually does, so huge, huge liberties taken with the work situations from here on out. And thanks again for the reviews, those absolutely make my day! Let me know what you think!

The Fourth Time

The fourth time I saw him was one of the more embarrassing moments I had experienced for quite a while. It was 7:00 on a Tuesday night and I was unfortunately still at work. Well, more accurately, back at work. I had left for an hour or so to hit the gym for a short workout which I immediately counteracted by grabbing a burger and fries for dinner. Still having some analysis to do for a new project, I had returned to my office in much more comfortable exercise clothes to put in a couple more hours of work. Our floor was deserted, which would have creeped me out a little if I hadn't had my headphones on, listening to my iPod as loud as I could handle it.

I would like to point out that I was 100% sure that I was by myself in the office. So as I read over some financial data, I was humming and maybe dancing a little in my chair along with my favorite playlist. Not full on singing or anything, but there was definite noise being made and a lot of swaying and head movement to the music. Especially when Carrie Underwood's "Cowboy Casanova" started playing. I was so engrossed in my reading that I didn't see the movement out of the corner of my eye that I normally would have. Then I heard the unmistakable sound of a man clearing his throat, definitely loud enough to be in my office. I thought for a second that maybe my boss had returned, which would have been a lot better than who I did see when I looked up from my work.

I jerked the buds out of my ears and paused the music as Harvey Specter stood in my door, laughing at me. "So, this is why the projected revenue for the Hollings acquisition is wrong. You're too busy performing to concentrate on your work."

Several thoughts flew through my mind once I stopped cursing the entire situation. First—really? Of all the people in the world to catch me doing something foolish, why did it have to be the man who apparently never had a hair out of place, much less did something he might not want broadcasted everywhere? Second, even though he was openly laughing at me, I had to admit, the smile on his face and flash of humor in his eyes as a result was almost worth the embarrassment and scathing comments that were coming. It still wasn't fair that he looked like that. Especially since I was wearing yoga pants and a college t-shirt. And last…

"Wait, what do you mean, the projections were wrong? I checked them twice before sending the report over," I grabbed the nearby file to which he was referring when it clicked he was saying my work was wrong. "I used the standard average ROA and ROE to forecast it, just like with every other acquisition projection."

"Hollings revenues have been growing by leaps and bounds for the last three years. These numbers show it declining after the buy. Why would you assume income would change that much?" he countered, dropping his own folder on my desk. He might have been laughing when he came in, but now I was seeing the intimidating lawyer that half of New York feared. His stance, his expression, everything shouted that he was ready for battle.

"You know we have to be conservative on our projections with the current state of the economy. Plus, if Hollings does buy Mercker Tech, there will be a ton of acquisition costs that will eat into whatever revenue growth it experiences." I was warming up to the subject; while I might have been at a clothing disadvantage, I did know my stuff. "Those projections are reasonable given the economic climate and you know that. Anything above that is gravy."

"If I go into this meeting tomorrow with this forecast, Hollings will change his mind completely on buying the Mercker Tech. That means that I don't get to coordinate the sale and that cuts into my billable hours. That's not going to happen. You need to fix this," he said, sitting in a chair opposite me. He seemed to be ready to stay for the long haul.

"What would you like me to do, Mr. Specter?" Ah, there it was, my old friend sarcasm. It was nice of it to finally make an appearance. I was slightly offended that he assumed my work was incorrect and didn't mind showing it. "I can't change numbers just so your sales pitch looks better. Unless I'm mistaken, you're the closer in this scenario."

For a long, long moment, we stared at each other, both of us believing we were right. I knew I had completed the projections accurately and that the figures were reasonable. So I waited to see what his response would be.

"The acquisition costs will be manageable and the cut backs they have planned within the Mercker operations will cover those," he finally commented. "That would bump the revenue back into the same range as last year. I know this company and there's no way it doesn't clear at least a 12% profit margin, even with a major purchase like this one."

I frowned, studying the information still in front of me. "That very well may be, but it is complete speculation. There are too many variables involved. Which is why I couldn't…"

"Include that in your original analysis, I know," he interrupted. "But if you ran another analysis under that assumption, I could use that in the meeting tomorrow. Along with the 'conservative' original estimates to show best and worst case," he added when he realized I was going to protest.

"Maybe I don't have time to run another analysis. I do have other work to do, you know," I complained, gesturing the stacks of papers littering my desk. I knew that it would only take an hour or so to do as he asked, but I wasn't ready to give up just yet. I wasn't wrong, but I was beginning to see there might be other possible scenarios that could be presented. And damn it, I hated not being able to fulfill a work request.

For the first time since he had invaded my office, he smirked. "But you have time to dance around to," he moved quicker than I would have thought possible and snagged my iPod from my desk. "Cowboy Casanova?" he read. His tone when saying the song title implied he wasn't impressed with my musical taste. This was confirmed when he continued, "That's an actual tragedy."

"Hey, I don't barge into your office, after hours I might add, and pass judgment on whatever is in your record collection," I retorted, a little snappily, remembering the entire wall filled with old LP's I had seen at Pearson Hardman. "Or are all of those just for show?"

"No, but you're more than welcome to inspect them, I actually have good taste," he said smugly. I couldn't help it, I rolled my eyes in response.

"Let me guess, there hasn't been any good music made this century, ever since that weird compact disc invention," I snarked back, not wanting him to know that I thought his record collection was unbelievable cool. "Anything else, grandpa?"

He grinned again, obviously not bothered by my insult, and stood up, buttoning his suit jacket as he did. I realized this was the first time that I hadn't been massively overwhelmed by his good looks. I was well on my way to congratulating myself for a job well done when he said, "So you'll have that new analysis to me by noon tomorrow." It wasn't so much a question as it was a statement.

I sighed heavily. "I suppose I can try, Mr. Specter," I answered, trying to sound inconvenienced. He gave me that "I'm a badass" smile and headed to the door.

"Good, I'll expect it by 10, Ms. Walker" he threw over his shoulder as I watched him disappear down the hallway.

What the hell, I thought, how did he manage to get the last word again? For the second time, I had been tricked into doing exactly what he wanted me to do. I was beginning to understand why he was so good at what he did; I was going to do extra work for someone that still didn't know my first name. As I finished reading, I considered whether I was looking forward to the next meeting or not. Hopefully I would be better dressed.

Unfortunately for me, that didn't happen…

TBC