DA's Office - Pt I

Harvey leans against the wall next to the coffee cart, raising an eyebrow over the rim of his styrofoam cup. "Go on, say it."

Gordon fights a smile, sipping from his own fresh brew. His son can be ignorant when he wants to be, but Harvey's also not totally clueless when it comes to reading people. He just likes everyone to think he is in order to get an upper-hand. "Your new secretary is quite the character. Seems like she's keeping you in line."

"Dad." Harvey rolls his eyes at the comment. The only reason he found out about his father's impromptu visit was because the man's laughter had filtered into his office from Donna's workstation. Otherwise, he's sure the pair would have continued chatting up a storm like they've known each other for years.

"I'm just saying, the girl's got moxie… Seems to have her head screwed on right, too." A good mix as far as he's concerned, and something that can't be said about all the women his son has dalliances with. "She's definitely a keeper."

"Donna works for me," Harvey points out, already uncomfortable with where the conversation is heading. He's all too aware his new secretary isn't like the company he usually keeps. From what he's seen so far, Donna Paulsen isn't like anyone he's ever met, let alone had working for him. She's intelligent, confident, and gorgeous—a perfect trifecta, but he learnt a long time ago, perfect doesn't last. His parent's marriage is proof of that, and he's not in any rush to make the same mistakes his father did. "She's a friend, that's all."

"Friend." Gordon scoffs over his drink. "My son hasn't been friends with a girl since the sixth grade… You should have kept in touch with Macey, I heard she—"

"Okay, stop." Harvey lowers his drink, turning more serious. His father doesn't show up just for coffee. They go for beer, hit the cages, catch a jazz show every now and again, but since he graduated, Gordon has never sought him out at work, and he steels himself, preparing for the real reason Donna cleared his afternoon. "What's going on, dad. Is it Marcus… Is he in some kind of trouble?"

Gordon winces, but quickly shakes his head. Honestly, he hadn't expected his son to remember the date, but every year that passes is another one lost, and he sets his cup down on the petition, eyeing the promising young lawyer. "It's your mother's birthday."

Harvey stiffens, the taste in his mouth turning bitter as he shifts his gaze across the street. He doesn't owe Lilly anything, least of all his time, and he doesn't understand why his father has an ounce of care for the woman who cheated on him. "Good for her," he grumbles, in no way inclined to carry on the conversation.

Gordon uses the unguarded moment to take in his eldest son. At times Harvey presents stubbornness as a shield, stopping him from seeing what's important—that family, no matter how dysfunctional, are a part of life, and that people can make mistakes out of love, not only with the intention of causing pain. "It doesn't have to be today… but she isn't a bad person, Harvey. You should think about giving her a call."

"Sure." He firms his jaw, wary of directing his anger towards the wrong person. Gordon is loyal to a fault, and he respects the man, but that doesn't mean he's going to sit and listen to his father defend Lily's actions. "I should be heading back."

He pushes off the wall, expecting resistance, and isn't surprised when Gordon stops him, but the words out of the older man's mouth aren't the ones he's expecting.

"Take a coffee back for Donna." Gordon crumples his cup. "Skim milk latte, sugar and cream."

Harvey furrows his brow. "What?"

Gordon shrugs, fishing for his wallet and pulling out a fiver. "You don't have to listen to everything I say, Harvey—" he hands over the money "—but that woman sees something in you, the same thing I do. You're a good man. Don't push her away."

Harvey scrunches the paper in his hand, shifting his gaze to the coffee cart, and breathing in sharply through his nose, not sure how to respond.

Gordon saves him the trouble, clapping him on the shoulder, and leaving his son to make the decision for himself—smiling as he catches the lawyer moving towards the cart. Out of his two children, Harvey is by far the more stubborn one, but he's also always been the kid who listens when he's being dealt words of advice. And he has a feeling the man's going to learn a lot from the fiery secretary has shown an interest and devotion towards his son.

Harvey may not be ready to access everything he's feeling, but Gordon's sure with a little time, care, and sometimes even a firm hand, Donna Paulsen is going to be the woman who changes him for the better—makes Harvey see that love can be hard, and challenging, but in the end his life will be richer for it. And when that day comes, he's going to be even more proud of his eldest son.

…

Donna stares at the coffee on her desk, not quite sure what to make of the gesture. She was only kidding when she reeled off her order to Gordon, expecting the father/son duo to be gone the rest of the afternoon. The fact Harvey is back after only twenty minutes, and that he'd landed the beverage down with a forced smile, is ringing alarm bells, and she waits a full five seconds before standing up and knocking on the door to his office.

He beckons her in, already back in work mode.

"Donna, I need—"

"To talk about what just happened?" she says brazenly, slipping into the chair opposite him.

He stiffens, ignoring the comment and shoving a file at her. "I need ten copies of this, and what happened is none of your concern."

She takes the folder, and thinks about leaving, letting him sulk, but if there's one thing she's learned since starting at his desk, it's that he has no clue how to handle his emotions. He riles easily behind the confines of his office walls, and the rest of the floor might not see it, but she does. "Maybe it's not," she admits, folding the document in her lap, "But if you go out there with that scowl on, Cameron's going to have something to say about it."

"I'm fine," he snaps, not bothering to dignify the comment with any other response. He just needs a goddamn minute to clear his head, and he picks up the next brief on the pile, flipping through it and hoping she'll take the hint.

He isn't fine, that much is obvious to her, but rather than argue, she tries a different approach. "Okay." Her fingers pull herself up, waving the folder as she calls his bluff. "I'll have Milton here in fifteen. You'll have to use the smaller conference room, but that's probably a good thing—less light. He's feeling a little self-conscious about the new hair transplant he got after the divorce was finalized last week..."

The wealth of information fills him with a sense of dread, the thought of playing nice when his frustration is already at peak too much to handle, and he breathes in deeply with a rushed exhale. "Donna, wait."

She turns back, meeting his uncertain gaze, and her expression softens. He'll never admit to needing help, but that's okay. It's her job to protect him from making rash decisions. So long as he listens, that's all she needs from him, and her mouth curves around a gentle smile. "Your father… he seems like a good man."

Harvey sinks back in his chair with a sigh. "He is."

She nods, his silent request passing between them, and she does the hard work for him. "I'll tell Milton he should take a few days, let the treatment settle."

Relief tunnels through him, Gordon's comment about Donna seeing the best in him as well, resonating. He isn't sure if he's a good man or not. He's competitive, career driven, and half the time acts as if people's needs are a game he's trying to win, but just like his father, Donna makes him want to strive to be better, even if he doesn't always know how. "It's my mother's birthday today…" He finds himself suddenly admitting, and he awkwardly clears his throat. "We're not really close."

He averts his gaze, and her first instinct is to apologize, but Harvey Specter isn't a man who needs sympathy, just understanding. "I have a sister…" she reveals, inwardly flinching at the mention of her older sibling. "This is the only time I'm ever going to talk about her, but there's an opening in the shitty relatives club if you want to join?"

He smirks, and even though he probably shouldn't, he secrets the tidbit away in case she does want to bring it up some day—surprising himself with the thought. He told Gordon they were friend's, using the word flippantly, but the only other person who knows about his mother is Jessica, and strangely, he doesn't feel any worse for having admitted the weakness. If anything, he relaxes slightly, stealing a glance at her. "Can I be president?"

"No." She hits him with a small grin. "But you can stand-in, just for today."

His lips twitch in response, but he finds the relief fading the second she steps out the door, resentment towards his feelings coiling in the pit of his stomach. If he wasn't so screwed up maybe he'd have a chance with a woman like Donna. Someone who understands him, pushes the perfect amount, and is undoubtedly too good for him, but his father was right about one thing.

Donna is someone he wants in his life, and he's going to do everything he can to try and keep her around.