S8. Harvey is not happy when he finds out Donna is working closely with a client.
...
Donna made a move and Louis is now Managing Partner of the firm, and Harvey never thought he'd see the day.
He has to admit Louis has grown and hasn't bragged about it too much, he even gave him a speech on how wild stallions have to run free, and even if Harvey came out a bit traumatized from Louis' office after that conversation he's also glad he won't have to run all his cases by Louis, not that he was planning to anyway.
He spots Donna coming out of the copy room and a smile immediately appears on his face. He was so in awe of her the other night, so proud of how she took the reins and made sure the firm wouldn't suffer the consequences of his fight with Robert over whose name would be up on the wall next.
"Hey! Where have you been all day? I've barely seen you" He comments and she smirks.
"I've been out, taking care of my real managing partner duties" She sasses and he chuckles.
"Really? Does that include personal favors to Louis?" He asks with lifted eyebrows as he leans slightly closer to her "Cause if he gets them, then I want them too" His voice drops an octave and Donna quirks her mouth, a teasing grin now adorning her lips.
"But you're not managing partner anymore" She retorts in the same tone.
"Ouch" He says as he clutches his chest in mock offense and she laughs at his antics.
"You're an idiot" She quips with a smile.
"So I've been told" He quips back.
"Well, if you really wanna know, I was at Kessler's offices helping him find a new general counsel"
"Furniture guy?" Harvey asks with amusement and she nods.
"You know he owns one the biggest furniture design companies in the country, right?"
"Like I said, furniture guy" She laughs softly and shakes her head. "So why did you go down there? Finding him a general counselor is not your job"
"I know" She agrees as she looks at him more closely, trying to analyze exactly how bothered he is by her visiting Kessler today. "But Louis couldn't say no to one of his oldest clients and he was willing to help him himself, so I convinced him to start delegating and I offered to do it myself"
"Oh, so that's why he told me he didn't need to look over my case and that wild stallions are meant to run free"
Donna snorts at that "He didn't"
"Oh he did, said he wasn't going to ride me hard" He sees her gulp visibly and throws her a charming smirk.
"Oh my god"
"I know"
Katrina chooses that moment to leave the copy room "Harvey, Donna" She acknowledges the name partner and the COO.
Harvey clears his throat and nods at both women "Ladies" He says as he turns on his heels and walks away, Donna stares at his back until he disappears down the hallway.
"Everything okay?" Katrina asks and Donna nods.
"Yeah, fine" She brushes off with a hand "I better get going, it's been a long day"
"Good night, Donna"
"Night Katrina"
She ends up being caught up with some paperwork for a few more minutes, but after another half an hour or so she's getting inside the back of the black Lexus the firm destined for her after she became COO.
"Home?" Her driver asks.
"Not tonight" She simply replies and her driver immediately understands where she's headed.
It's a short drive and once her driver stops at the entrance of the building, she bids him goodnight and lets out a long sigh, relieved to be home, because the truth is, for the past few weeks, this place has felt more like home than her own apartment and as she gets into the elevator and heads towards the penthouse she's so happy to finally be able to relax, preferably in the arms of the man she loves, after having a draining day.
She lets herself in with her key and makes her way into the living room. "Hey" Her boyfriend calls softly as he gets off the couch and approaches her.
His big hands find their natural place on her hips and he leans down to kiss her softly on the lips. "I've been waiting all day to do that"
"Me too" She smiles into his lips as she says the words and he pulls her in for a deeper kiss.
"I ordered Thai, it should be here in twenty minutes" He announces with a proud grin.
"Great, I'm starving" She replies and she loves how serious he takes this new role of boyfriend he finds himself in, taking pride in knowing what she likes and doesn't and ordering from her favorite place when he doesn't particularly like it.
If there's something Harvey Specter has proved over the years is that he would do anything for Donna Paulsen, and that includes eating shitty Thai quite often.
"You know how I told you about Louis telling me he wasn't going to ride me hard?" She snorts once more at Louis' antics and nods.
"How can I forget?"
"Well" Harvey starts as he runs his hands up and down her sides " Before we were interrupted by Katrina I was gonna say I wouldn't be opposed at all to you riding me hard, as hard as you want, actually" He says suggestively and she engulfs her arms around his shoulders and hugs him tightly.
"And I gladly will, but first I'd like to stay like this for a minute or so" She says against his neck and he kisses the side of her head.
"Hey, what's wrong?" He asks softly as he caresses her hair.
"Nothing. I just missed you"
Harvey simply smiles and hugs her tighter to him "I missed you too. I hate it when I barely see you all day"
She pulls away slightly to cradle his face in her hands and kisses him "So, you're gonna let me ride you hard, huh?" She says with a smirk and he quirks a perfect eyebrow.
"I sure am. So, as much as I love green on you, I think it's time I finally take this dress off of you, we both know it's all I've thought about since this morning"
"Well, you better be able to multitask or I'll have to stop wearing green at the office"
"Donna, you could wear a plastic bag and you'd still be all I can think about"
"Whipped" She teases good naturedly and he chuckles.
"Indeed. So, time for that dress to look amazing on my bedroom floor"
"I agree" She breathes out as he pulls the zipper down and leads her towards his bedroom.
…
It's around an hour later that their shitty Thai order arrives and they settle on the couch with it, both freshly showered and wearing comfortable clothes. Harvey clad in gray pants and plain black t-shirt, while Donna put on a pair of black leggings and Harvey's old Harvard's shirt. She leans against his chest while she digs into her food.
"So" Harvey starts casually as he eats his pad thai "Were you able to help 'furniture guy' today?"
Donna smiles to herself and tilts her head towards him "Not yet, but I told him I'd find him the best candidates by tomorrow"
"Oh, so you're gonna go see him again tomorrow" It's a statement more than a question and Donna frowns at him.
"Is that a problem?"
"Of course not" He quickly says, not wanting to let her see it actually does bother him a bit.
"Good, because you certainly know nothing could ever happen because I'm yours and yours only"
"I do know that, Donna"
"Then why are you upset about it?"
"I'm not upset"
"Harvey" Donna calls his name in that tone that he knows means she's onto him. She leaves her carton of food on the coffee table and turns to look at him "You forget that I was your best friend for fifteen years before we got together and I know you better than you know yourself"
"It's just…" He trails off and sighs deeply, trying to find the way to tell her what's bothering him. "He's a great guy, you know? He's the guy you take to your parents' and they ask you when you'll tie the knot with him" Donna laughs softly and Harvey scoffs "Great, now you're laughing at me" He grunts out.
"No, of course not" She reassures him as she takes his carton of food from his hands and places it next to hers on the table. She then puts her hands on his shoulders and climbs onto his lap to straddle him. "I'm a grown woman, Harvey, my parents have no right to opine on who I bring home, and even if they did my mother loves you. I just don't know where you got that from and even if it were true, I truly couldn't care less, and he didn't even try to hit on me, so you're worrying over nothing"
"He will" Harvey says and Donna gives him a questioning look. "He asked Louis if he knew whether you were seeing anyone. He came by the firm today, after your meeting, and then I crossed paths with Louis and he was thrilled for you, started telling me what an amazing guy Thomas is, and that he was hoping you'd say yes. It took all of my willpower not to tell him about us right there and then"
"Why didn't you?" She asks, but it's not an accusatory tone, simply a curious one.
"Because no one knows, and I wouldn't have told him without discussing it with you first"
"I get that, but Louis is our friend, and I wouldn't have been mad if you had told him"
"I know, I just… I think we should do it together, when we decide to start telling people"
"Yeah, that'd be nice"
"You wanna start telling people?" She asks carefully and he shrugs.
"I mean, we'll have to at some point, but the moment we do, we'll have to deal with the stares and the comments behind our backs and I think I want to enjoy the calmness we have right now a bit more"
She smiles down at him and kisses him, he's like a drug she can't get enough of. She wants to kiss him and be with him all the goddamn time, like a schoolgirl with her first crush.
"I think so too"
He smiles and closes the distance between them once more. She grinds into him and he wraps both arms around her, pulling her closer while he deepens the kiss.
"We're worse than two horny teenagers" She mumbles against his lips.
"So much worse" He agrees "But also so much better, cause teenagers are sloppy and have no experience" He jokes and she giggles and oh how he loves to hear the sound of her giggles. Making Donna laugh is definitely his favorite hobby these days.
"You have a very good point there"
…
"Ray will be here in ten" Harvey says as he comes out of the bedroom next morning, adjusting the cuffs of his shirt, tie in hand. He hands it to Donna and lifts the collar of his shirt so she can put it on and tie the knot. Of course it's something he can definitely do by himself. He's done it for years, but ever since their relationship shifted almost three months ago, she insists it's something she likes to do for him, she even told him how over the years she loved adjusting the knot on his tie cause it was as physically close as she was allowed to get to him, so he lets her do it every morning now, since they have yet to spend a night apart since he confessed his feelings to her the night of their best friends' wedding.
"I'm not coming with you and Ray" She explains as she starts working on the knot.
"You're going to see Kessler first" Harvey assumes and Donna gives him a look at the annoyance in his voice.
"We've been over this, Harvey, a mere few hours ago too"
"Sorry, I got distracted after taking you to bed, everything before and after that is pretty blurry right now" And there's that giggle again, he thinks with a smile of his own.
"We got pretty distracted, yeah" She agrees.
"And it was pretty mind blowing, so I'm allowed to still not being able to think straight for a few more hours"
"Okay, well, in that case I'll say it again. You have nothing to worry about"
"I know that" He says with a shrug and a scoff "He might be husband material, but girls prefer bad boys"
"Well, even if that's true, you're husband material too" She retorts as she finishes with his tie. "Done" She announces and catches the slight look of panic in his eyes "Relax, Harvey, I'm not trying to trick you into proposing or anything" She says with a roll of her eyes.
"I know, and I'll try to be the best possible husband material when we're married" His clarification makes Donna's heart beat faster, and she really had no intention of bringing up marriage as a subject, she just wanted to reassure him, because she knows he's not completely okay with her working closely with Thomas Kessler.
"When we're married?" She asks with a raised eyebrow
"Sure, I mean, we're not kids anymore Donna, we're adults in a committed relationship, we'll get married at some point" He sounds so casual and certain that she actually wonders if she's dreaming.
"Okay, just to be clear, you're not actually proposing, are you? Cause it would be the worst proposal ever"
He chuckles and wraps his arms around her waist, leaning down for a quick peck on the lips "Trust me Paulsen, when I propose you'll know"
"Good to know" She quips as she kisses him one more time and buries her face in his neck, they stay like that for a minute or so, simply enjoying the feeling of being wrapped in each other's arms.
They just had what's probably the weirdest conversation they've ever had, but it doesn't feel weird to them. On the contrary, it feels completely natural that marriage is the next logical step in their relationship. After all, they are already practically living together anyway, so it would just be another way to cement what they both know is the last relationship they'll ever have.
….
Donna walks into Kessler's offices without being able to wipe the huge smile on her face as a consequence of her conversation with Harvey. After so many years of wanting to have this with him and after admitting to each other that this is it for them, how can she pretend she's nothing but happy and completely smitten with her boyfriend?, probably soon to be fiancé.
Her meeting with Thomas goes well, she tells him why he should trust what on paper would look like the most unsuitable candidate, but it's really the one he should hire because if given the chance he'd go to ends of the earth for him.
"Can I go now?" She jokingly asks after he makes a joke about how no one can be funnier than him since it's bad for morale.
"You can. But before you do, I just wanted to say that I've been thinking about what I told you about chemistry and this might seem a bit bold, but I think there's something here, and I think we have spectacular chemistry, Donna"
Donna sighs and it takes her back to her conversation with Harvey last night, when he warned her about this.
"Thomas—" She starts and he interrupts her when he sees the rejection coming.
"Please, let me finish" He implores "I know I'm a client of the firm, but one dinner, that's all I ask, and if it doesn't work out, no hard feelings" He suggests with a sheepish smile, and she's very flattered cause Thomas seems like a great guy and he's very handsome too, but she's happily taken, by the love of her life nonetheless.
"Thomas, I feel very flattered right now, but I can't accept your invitation, and it's not because of the firm" She hurries to clarify when she can see he's about to interrupt her again "It's because I'm seeing someone, and it's serious. I mean, he's my boyfriend, we're practically living together" She had no reason to be so specific but she feels the need to let him know how serious she is about her relationship.
Thomas nods and gives her a sad smile. "It was worth the shot. It's Harvey Specter, isn't it?" And that takes her completely by surprise, her shock answering for her as she looks like a deer caught in headlights.
"Why would you think that?" She almost whispers the question, because if it's that obvious to Thomas, who knows nothing about them, the whole firm must already know too.
"Because I went by the firm yesterday and he glared at me as much as he could the whole time I was in his proximity, he actually walked by the conference room glaring at me the whole time" He tells her a bit amused "I can't blame him though, if I was lucky enough to have you, I'd be that protective too" His tone is humorous now and it makes Donna smile. She should be pissed at Harvey marking his territory like that, taking a claim over her, but she wanted to be his for so long, that she'll gladly let him claim her as his, as much as he wants to.
"Thomas, it's relatively new, and no one knows, so—"
"I won't say a word" He reassures her.
She nods and smiles her appreciation as she stands from her seat.
"You'll make a very lucky woman really happy sooner than later, Thomas" She compliments as he stands too.
"That's very flattering Donna, thank you. And if you're ever available again…" He trails off and she gives him a pointed look as she tilts her head slightly to the side.
"I won't ever be, but again, I'm flattered"
"Goodbye Donna"
"Goodbye Thomas. Let me know how it goes with Brendon"
"Will do"
…
She leaves the building and when she heads towards the black Lexus waiting for her, she hops into the backseat and almost jumps out of her skin when she finds Harvey sitting there, and Ray in the driver's seat.
"You really should look before jumping into the back of a car Donna" He says with a teasing tone and a smirk that she wants to wipe off his face, with her mouth preferably cause she'll never get over how hot he looks in a three piece suit.
"You almost scared me to death" She scolds as she softly slaps his shoulder "What are you doing here?"
"I had a light morning, so I told Ray to drive me here and told your driver to leave" He hands Ray a twenty and the man takes the money with a smile. Donna looks taken aback by the interaction "He waged you wouldn't realize it wasn't your car, I waged you would" He explains.
"In my defense, they look exactly the same. Hi Ray" She greets the driver.
"Hi, Miss. Paulsen" He greets back.
Harvey lifts the privacy glass as soon as Ray starts driving and turns to his girlfriend "How did it go?" He asks.
"It went well, my job is done" Is all she offers.
"Good"
"Yeah"
"So, did he um…" He starts but hesitates, testing if she will read him like she always does and answer for him without him having to actually ask what he's dying to know.
"Did he… what?" She presses, trying to hold a smile.
He takes a deep breath and gives her an annoyed look, perfectly knowing what she's doing. "Did he ask you out?" He finally asks.
"He did. And you know, since we're trying to keep this to ourselves, and we don't want anyone knowing yet, I had to say yes" She tells him innocently and very seriously.
"Oh" He says "I thought you were going to tell him no, because he is a client and all"
"Well" She starts calmly, deciding to play with him a bit more "It's not like my boyfriend took this claim on me and glared at him the whole time he was at the firm yesterday to keep him from even daring himself to ask me out"
And now Harvey knows the truth is out and Donna knows what he tried to do.
"I'm sorry" He mumbles.
"No, you're not"
"So, just to be clear, you didn't say yes?" She laughs and leans towards him to kiss him softly.
"Of course I didn't" She mumbles into his lips "I told him I was practically living with my boyfriend and that's when he figured out it was you, it apparently explained your behavior towards him"
"Well, he was going to ask my girlfriend out, so I'm not sorry"
"You just said you were" She chuckles and now he's the one who plants a kiss on her lips.
"I lied" He says with a grin.
"Well, good"
"So, you're not mad at me for behaving like a jealous asshole?" He asks, needing to make sure they're completely fine.
"Of course not, I mean, I don't want you taking a claim on me all the time, but I liked feeling a bit claimed by you. Does that even make sense?" She wonders outloud and he nods.
"It does, you can claim me as yours next time we run into a woman trying to get into my pants"
"Ugh, I won't be claiming you every time we go out, Harvey. It would be exhausting. I've learnt to just ignore them over the years"
"I'm sorry for being women's godsend, Donna. You should be proud I'm only yours" He says with an arrogant tone, and she knows he's only joking, the old Harvey would have actually meant that, but he's not that version of himself anymore. He's come so far, it fills her with pride.
"I am" She says more seriously and his expression softens.
"I'm glad too" He says back "I only ever wanted to be yours"
"Good" She whispers.
"Good" He whispers back as he claims her lips one more time. This time he deepens the kiss and Donna tries to pull away, to remind him they're on the back of the car and they'll be arriving soon but she can't, and she ends up falling for his charm and his lips like she always does and she finds herself immersed in the kiss. They'll be professional once they make it work.
"I want to start telling people" Harvey breathes out once they break apart and Donna looks at him, and cups his cheek as she stares into his eyes.
"Are you sure, because last night you said you wanted to wait, we agreed to wait" She reminds him.
"I know, and we won't if you're not ready. But I don't want any clients, or anyone really, trying to ask you out. I want everyone to know you're mine as much as I'm yours"
"Okay then"
"Really?"
"Yeah, let's start with Louis" She suggests and he groans.
"Ugh, is it too late to reconsider?" He jokes and she giggles.
"Yeah, sorry"
"Okay then, we'll start with Louis"
She kisses him again, damn all, she'll adjust her makeup and hair on the ride up to the firm in a few minutes.
Right now all she wants is to be kissed senselessly by her boyfriend.
...
A/N I know I already had something similar about darvey secretaly dating, but that mixed with jealous Harvey will always be something I enjoy writing so I hope you guys liked it anyway and let me know what you think.