This one goes to the birthday girl, Cami (raffsmile). Have the best of days my friend and I hope you like this small piece I wrote for you.
….
Harvey's always known Donna can be really stubborn.
They've had more than a few disagreements over the years, but during most of the time they've known each other he was her boss, and he's not that anymore.
He's her boyfriend now, so while before he would simply let her cool off or give her an order, now he has to find a way for them to be okay despite their argument, because he really hates it when she's mad at him.
So far none of their fights were as bad as the fight they had yesterday.
He knows he acted like an ass, he knows he probably exaggerated, blew things out of proportion like he usually does, but he still doesn't think he deserves the cold shoulder she's giving him.
She hasn't spoken to him since last night after she yelled at him for at least two solid minutes. He was brave enough after their argument to tell her he didn't want to spend the night apart and she'd only nodded and retreated to her bedroom, leaving the door open for him to follow.
"Don't even think about it" Is all she had said when he laid down next to her and attempted to put his arm around her like he does every night. He had sighed and turned to his side, but he's a cuddler and his body misses her even in his sleep so at some point in the middle of the night he'd involuntarily moved and ended up draping an arm around her in their sleep anyway.
She'd said nothing when she woke up, she simply removed his arm from around her and headed into the shower, this time making sure to close the bathroom door, letting him know he was not invited to join her.
He had made breakfast, they had their coffee and toasts in silence and then they rode to work together, with Donna focused on her cell phone the whole ride, Ray giving them concerned looks over the rearview mirror and Harvey dreading the whole ride, hating the silent treatment he was getting from the woman he loves.
"You're gonna have to talk to me again at some point" He quietly says as he calls for the elevator and they step inside. She clutches her purse tightly, her posture showing her stubbornness as she turns her head sideways, her chin held high while she looks at him.
"Not until you apologize first"
"I already told you, I will never apologize for looking after you"
"How exactly is punching someone on my behalf looking after me?"
"He was all over you!" He exclaims exasperatedly.
"He was not! I told you I had it under control before you decided to connect your fist with his jaw"
"Yeah, well, I don't care, I'm not gonna let some asshole try to hit on you in a bar while I'm there. I only left you alone for like five minutes top"
Before she can reply, the elevator stops and more people step in, so they both stay silent for the rest of the ride.
Once they reach the firm's floor, Harvey follows Donna and walks her to her office.
"I have a lot of work Harvey, and this isn't the place to keep arguing about this" She says while heading towards her desk as he follows behind her.
"I know, I was just walking you to your office" He holds his arms up in surrender.
"Well, I'm already safe in my office. No one can try to 'hit on me' while I'm here"
"Goddamn it, Donna. Why do you have to be so stubborn?" He asks her quietly but his posture is so tense she can feel the frustration and the annoyment radiating from him.
"Did you hear what I just said? I'm done talking about this while we're at work" She looks at him with determination in her face and he sighs.
"Fine" He scoffs and leaves her office.
Not five seconds later Louis comes into her office "What was that about? Are you guys okay?" He asks with genuine concern.
"We'll be fine" Donna retorts.
"You wanna talk about it?" He asks as he sits in front of her desk.
"Louis, please don't take it personally, but I'm not sure I want to discuss this with you. You idolize Harvey, and I can't deal with that right now"
"Donna, no" Louis is quick to reply in a reassuring tone "I know how much of an asshole he can be, I will always take your side over his"
Donna thinks about it for a second and even if she knows she'll probably regret it, she decides to confide in Louis anyway.
"We were out having drinks last night, there was a man sitting at the bar looking at me since we got there and when Harvey left our table to go to the bathroom he came over, tried to make a move on me, I was telling him off when he tried to grab my arm, Harvey came back in that moment and punched him in the face"
"As he had every right to do!" Louis exclaims, horrified at the story.
"Louis! you just said you'd always take my side!" Donna exclaims with an indignant look.
"Yeah, well, for once Harvey is actually right!" He exclaims back indignantly.
"He overreacted, Louis!"
"No, he didn't. He was looking out for you, and yes maybe his methods are a little barbaric compared to mine, but you know how long Harvey has wanted to have this with you, Donna. I'm not saying he should go around punching every man that comes near you, but you were out together and that asshole waited for Harvey to leave you alone for a few minutes to approach you and he tried to touch you! Right in front of him, so, yes, maybe you should cut him some slack"
Her face softens and she thinks if things were the other way around how would she feel. Women lust after Harvey all the time, she's seen it so many times before, but he wasn't hers back then, and now that he finally is, she wouldn't want to see anyone trying to seduce her boyfriend while she's out on a date with him. So maybe she exaggerated a bit, she still disagrees with his behavior, but she can see what Louis is trying to tell her.
"I'll think about it"
"That's all I ask. I mean after all he's just a wild stallion looking out for his mare"
"I'm gonna let go of the fact that you just called me a 'mare' and go back to work" Donna says with amusement.
"Mares are magnificent creatures, Donna" Louis retorts
"Just go, Louis" She tells him more seriously and the managing partner flees the COO's office.
…
Harvey happened to have a lunch meeting with a client today so they don't cross paths until later in the afternoon when he walks into the associates' kitchen while she's making herself a coffee.
"I've always wondered why you never use the executives' kitchen"
"And I'm surprised you know where the associates' kitchen is" She retorts lightly.
"Is that where we are?" He quips jokingly and she chuckles softly, her anger having faded a bit after her talk with Louis.
"It sure is. So what are you doing here?"
"I was walking by and I saw you and I just wanted to ask you if you prefer we spend the night at my place tonight" He seems hesitant, testing the waters.
"Sounds good" She says as she turns to look at him and he walks in her direction.
He leans towards her to reach a mug in the top cabinet and she feels a little bit lightheaded at his presence surrounding her as his chest barely presses against hers.
"Harvey" She warns softly as he closes the cabinet and smirks devilishly.
"What? I'm just trying to make myself a coffee" His tone is far too innocent and it makes her smile at him.
"Yeah sure"
"It's not my fault you can't resist this 6 feet stack of awesomeness"
"Now you don't get to steal my lines, mister. And you don't want to test how able to resist you I am, I had thirteen years of practice, remember?" She lifts her eyebrows to prove her point and he rolls his eyes.
"Fine" He says as he leans towards her ear "I had lots of practice too" He whispers hotly and Donna places a hand on his chest to push him away slightly.
"Perfect, I'll be sleeping in my apartment then" She announces and she tries to walk past him but he presses her against the counter.
"Now, let's not exaggerate Donna, that's not necessary"
"Well, you just said you're perfectly capable to resist me, so I don't see why you couldn't spend a night on your own"
"Donna" He groans "Please tell me you're joking"
"I am certainly not"
"Come on" He begs softly.
"Say it" She challenges "I wanna hear you say it"
He rolls his eyes and sighs "Fine, I want you to come to my place"
"Why?"
"You're impossible Donna" He mutters.
"Why?" She repeats with a raised eyebrow.
"Because I hate sleeping without you, and you know it" She smirks, greatly enjoying teasing him.
"I do know that" She replies, matter of factly "I guess I can come over then" She says as if it's no big deal. "And we do need to have a serious conversation anyway"
"Do we? Can't we just skip to the make-up sex part?" He suggests seductively and she scoffs softly.
"No, we can't"
"Donna" He whines like a petulant child.
"Stop acting like a man-child"
"Fine" He finally retreats. He looks around to make sure there's no one nearby and quickly pecks her lips.
"Harvey" Donna scolds in an angry whisper.
"That's what you get for not giving me my morning kiss, Paulsen" He steps away from her and starts walking out of the kitchen.
"I hate you" She calls after him.
He turns around and smirks at her "You love me as much as I love you" He points out before exiting the kitchen, leaving a smiling Donna behind, because he's totally right, but also hating how easily she caves in to his charm.
…
Donna enters Harvey's condo that night to the delicious smell of food being cooked and the sound of jazz softly playing. She chuckles to herself as she takes off her heels and walks further into the apartment. She loves it when Harvey cooks for her and it's even better when he knows he screwed up and needs to make up for it.
"You're home" He calls cheerfully.
"I am" She says back as she walks towards him "Harvey, this is really nice but—"
"We need to talk, I know that, and I'm not trying to get out of anything. I promise"
"Okay then" She's still carrying her bag and shoes so she walks past the kitchen but is caught by surprise when Harvey tugs on her waist and spins her around so their chest connects.
"Not even a proper hello?" He asks with a slight pout and she cups his cheek as she places a soft kiss on his lips. "Now, that's better"
"How long till dinner's ready?" She asks him and he looks back at the oven to check the timer.
"Half an hour" He replies.
"Good. Open a bottle of wine and wait for me on the couch. I'll be right back" She steps out of his embrace then and he watches as she walks into the bedroom until he can no longer see her. He lets out a sigh as he heads towards the wine cooler and prepares himself for the inevitable. Might as well get this over with before dinner.
Ten minutes later she emerges in comfier clothes and her hair up in a loose bun, and he has to admit that as much as he loves seeing her in designer's clothes every day, this Donna, casual and domestic, it's his favorite Donna.
She sits on the couch next to him, takes her glass of wine from the small table and turns towards him.
"You want to start or should I?" She asks him in a soft tone, all anger gone by now, but she still feels that what happened last night can't just be left at that.
"You go first"
"Okay then" She says as she tucks her legs under her, takes a long sip of her wine and leaves the glass on the table.
"Over the years I've seen you lose it more than once" She starts, thinking about the times he hit Tanner or Stephen just to mention the ones that come to mind, but he's done it more than twice. "But that's not who you are anymore, Harvey. I know that, like I know that's not the man you wanna be anymore, and I want to know why you did it"
He leans against the backrest of the couch and sighs, thinking his next words carefully, trying to explain what caused him to react in such a barbaric way.
"I'd like to say I don't know, but I do" He tells her next as he glances at her to find her staring at him intently, waiting for an explanation. "I've been working on my insecurities and my abandonment issues for a while now, and Stan has been extremely helpful with that, but… I guess… they're not completely gone just yet"
"I would never leave you, Harvey. And I would never, ever, cheat on you" She assures him and he nods.
"I know that, Donna. It's nothing to do with that. I know you would never betray me"
"Then why?" She asks softly, her eyes still fixed on him "Why were you so jealous?"
He looks at her and decides that he needs to trust her with the real reason he punched that asshole. It's probably stupid, because he's used to men fussing over Donna whenever they go out or even at the firm when clients or visitors catch a glimpse of her. His girlfriend is beautiful, and he's well aware of the effect she causes on the male kind.
"He reminded me of Stephen" He finally confesses, completely taking Donna by surprise and shocking her.
"Huntley?" She asks with a somewhat confused face and Harvey tilts his head to the side and gives her a pointed look, as if saying 'isn't it obvious?'. It certainly is to him.
And now that Donna thinks about it, he's right, the man somewhat resembled the British lawyer she never wants to see again in her entire life.
"He sort of looked like that asshole and when I saw him touch you, Donna…" He trails off and looks at her as if she's the most precious thing in the world. She sure is to him "It brought it all back, only this time I had every right to punch him in the face"
"You punched Stephen too, and you said it wasn't because of me" She points out and he scoffs.
"Of course it was because of you, Donna. I beated the shit out of him and threw him against a mirror the second after he told me it was because of you I was so pissed. And he was right" He admits "So when I saw that guy taking advantage of me leaving you alone for five goddamn minutes…"
"You lost it" She finishes for him and he nods.
"And I'm not proud of it" He adds "But like I said, I'll never regret protecting you, Donna, it was the one thing I've always been allowed to do, even before we got together"
"I get it"
"You do?" He asks surprised and she nods.
"I do. But I don't ever want a repeat of that, okay? Next time you can just use words to scare the asshole off"
He smiles, that smile that it's hers and hers alone, the one she's never seen directed at anyone else, not even when they were only boss and secretary. Well they were never just that, but they weren't always this either. That beautiful grin of his has always been reserved just for her anyway.
"I promise" He compromises "Come here" He requests as he leans against the armrest and she moves from her sitting position to lay on top of him and nestle herself in his embrace.
"You were never the jealous type before" She points out softly and he chuckles.
"None of them were the love of my life" He tells her sincerely as he looks into her eyes and she snorts.
"That's probably the most cheesy thing you've ever said to me"
"It's true" He simply says, not backing out, he made the mistake of taking back his declaration of love for her once before, he's never making that mistake again.
"It's true for me too" She confesses, letting him see her vulnerability too. "You're the love of my life, Harvey. It's always been you"
"Look at us. From years of hiding how we feel about each other to perfectly being able to express how we feel"
"We've come a long way" She whispers and he nods.
"And I don't wanna ruin the moment, but… We've never talked about him before, and I just…"
"You can ask me anything you want, Harvey" She reassures him, perfectly being able to tell there's something he needs to know or reassure himself of.
"You were in rough shape for a while after we found out the truth about Stephen and at the time it made me wonder… If you were in love with him"
She can see it's a genuine concern, and not an accusation of any sort, they're past that, he knows how much she loves him and vice versa, and she guesses he simply would like to know now that he can actually ask.
"No" She replies with certainty. "I was never in love with him, it wasn't about that. Stephen was the one time my intuition completely failed me. I didn't see it, and I was angry because of that. He managed to deceive me, he turned me into someone who had been with a murderer. I was never in love with him, Harvey, I was simply disgusted by the whole thing and so angry with myself for not seeing him for who he was. He's the one person I couldn't read correctly, and that's why I was so upset about his betrayal"
She can see him visibly relax at her explanation for some reason and she cups his cheek, bringing their mouths together for a kiss "Even back then, you were the one I loved, Harvey. Always"
"Good" He hoarsely whispers "We can all misjudge people sometimes Donna, we all make mistakes and it's okay. Some of us even thought dating our therapist was a good idea once" He tries to lighten the mood with a joke but it makes Donna frown instead of laugh.
"I think we've had a deep enough conversation just now to bring her up, don't you think? Let's leave that conversation for another day" She suggests and he nods.
"You're right. There is only one thing left for us to do right now really" He flips her around so she's now the one lying under him as he hovers over her.
"Make-up sex?" She correctly guesses.
"Make-up sex" He confirms with a grin and a nod as he grinds his lower parts into hers.
"Okay, but let's go to bed, my back killed me all day the last time we did it on the couch"
"That's because you're—"
"Finish that sentence and you can kiss sex goodbye mister. For good" She threatens with a finger pointed at his chest.
"I was gonna say 'a hard worker', you did gave all your best that time"
"I always give all my best" She corrects him.
"Prove it" He mumbles against her neck and she moans as he hits a particular spot with his mouth.
"I will, but I'm serious, Harvey. Bed, now" She commands in a bossy tone and he pulls her up by her arms before throwing her over his shoulder.
"Whatever you say, ma'am"
"Harvey, the food!" She exclaims in a moment of clarity, causing Harvey to deviate towards the kitchen to turn the oven off before resuming his path to their bedroom, never letting go of Donna.
She giggles all the way to the bedroom, both eager to spend the rest of the evening lost in each other.