Chapter Text
Oblivious to Donna’s current whereabouts, Harvey decided to trust her judgement and began to read the file on Delphine’s company. As he read, he realized Donna might’ve been right recommending her as a client. From what he could tell, Delphine had built her company from scratch, and in less than ten years, it had became a multi-billion euros company in France and the rest of the EU. Donna’s research was rather extensive, and it showed that her company had never had any judiciary issues, had never been sued for wrongful termination, prejudice or sexual harassment. It wasn’t uncommon to uncover some shady shit in the fashion world, but it wasn’t the case here. Mike would love her, he thought. A young entrepreneur with ambition, and actual respect for her employees and strong work ethics. He owed it to Donna, and to his firm, to at least go chat with her and see what her plans were, and what she expected from him.
---
Much later on the afternoon, having studied Delphine’s file and done some work on his hotel merger case, he considered checking in Donna who must’ve been back to work by now, when his phone rang. He checked the caller ID and smiled, a bit surprised.
“Mom ? How are you ?”
“Hello Harvey”, Lily greeted, “I hope I’m not bothering you”.
“It’s okay, I have to get to court but not for another hour”, he reassured her. “What can I do for you ?”, he then asked, curious.
“I’m in town for the week for a conference at Columbia, and I wondered if you maybe wanted to go to dinner with me”, she replied, “I know the last time I came it didn’t really end well, and I’m sorry...”.
“Mom, it’s okay”, he interrupted her, reminiscing the dinner and the terrible fight he had had after with Paula, who had asked him to stop working with Donna for the sake of their relationship.
“There’s water under the bridge, and it was never your fault in the first place”, he continued. “I’d love to go to dinner with you.” After a quick silence, he added ; “A lot has happened in the recent months. I’d love to catch up with you”. He knew his mother was always grateful when he agreed to share with her, because he had forsaken her for so long - with good reason. She would always feel guilty for the wedge that had lasted decades between the two of them, and cherished their conversations, however few of them there were.
“How does tonight sound ?”, she suggested.
“Well it’s already 6pm but I can have my secretary make a call, I’m sure she can find us place. We can meet there at 8 ? I’ll text you the address.”
“Sounds perfect Harvey. I’ll see you there”. He heard his mother hang up, and sighed, happy. It was good to have someone to talk to, and to not be permanently angry at his mother. In the seven years after his father had died, he had resented everyone in his family, including his brother, and he had unconsciously replaced them with his professional family, putting all of his hopes and expectations on Jessica, Donna, later Mike and Rachel, and even Louis to some extent. And because he had expected so much from every one of them, the smallest disappointment could turn into a full-fledged betrayal in his eyes. He had realized it now, with the help of Donna, of Dr. Lipschitz, and even, he had to admit, of Paula. It’s what had helped him cope with the departure of Jessica, Mike and Rachel. Though it still hurt, he wasn’t as broken as he would’ve been a few years ago, as he had been when Donna left him for Louis about three years back, before he reconciled with his mother.
---
Before leaving for his meeting with the judge and opposing counsel, he went by Donna’s office to check on her. When he entered, he wondered for a second if the meeting they’d had the morning even happened. She was perfectly dressed, her hair and make-up spotless. Only the dark circles under eyes, barely covered by concealer, convinced him he hadn’t dreamt. Always efficient in her role as COO, she had multiple files opened in front of her and was deep in her work. When he knocked on her door, she raised her head, a bit startled.
“Harvey, what can I do for you ?”, she greeted him.
“I just wanted to tell you that I’ve looked at the file you left”, he said
“And ?...”, she asked, expectantly. But she probably already knew what he was going to say.
“And you might’ve been onto something”, he replied cryptically, “that’s all I’ll say for now, but I will meet with your friend and hear what she has to say”. Donna smiled, “That’s all I could ask for Harvey. Thanks for trusting me”.
“I always trust you Donna”, Harvey replied, sincere. A few moments passed, and Harvey was about to leave Donna's office after offering one last smile, when she called him back.
“Harvey !”
“Yeah ?”
She hesitated for a second, and went for it.
“Would you like to go out for drinks tonight ?”, she asked, looking confident as ever, but far from feeling the same way. Harvey shook his head, sorry that he had to deny her.
“I’m sorry Donna I can’t tonight”, he answered. She nodded, rummaging through her papers to hide that she was momentarily a bit hurt. “It’s not that I don’t want to”, he continued. She looked up at him. “I...”, he hesitated, “I’m having dinner with my mother, she’s in town for the week.” Donna’s eyes lit up and she smiled to him.
“That’s fantastic Harvey, I’m happy for you !”, and she meant it.
“Thanks Donna”, he replied, before he added, “I’m busy tonight, but would you like to go out for drinks tomorrow night ? And I can tell you all about dinner with my mom, and lunch with your friend”. She nodded, her smile only growing wider.
“It’s a date”, she just replied. Harvey got a bit startled by the yet usual phrasing, and left for the night.
---
After a rather short meeting with the judge, that ended with a deal making both sides - though mostly Harvey and his client’s - satisfied, Harvey left for dinner. He was running a bit late, but he knew his mom wouldn’t mind. In fact, he could probably be late to every damn meeting they had, he thought wryly, and she’d have to forgive him. She owed him that much.
Once he arrived at the restaurant, he spotted her quickly and joined her.
“Hi mom, sorry I’m late”, he greeted her. She smiled and dismissed his comment with her hand.
“It’s okay Harvey, I don’t really have anything better to do anyways”, she just replied with a smirk. Harvey smiled, he always forgot that she was witty, and had a sense of humour rather similar to his, though it was hard for him to admit.
They spent a good part of the dinner talking about everything and anything, Harvey catching up Lily on the recent matters of the firm, the situation since Mike and Rachel left, and everything in between. She then updated him on the Marcus situation, since Harvey hadn’t received in the last few weeks.
“They’re getting the divorce, but they agreed to ditch the lawyers for the negotiation and manage custody of the children among themselves”, she told Harvey, she sounded both relieved and anxious. Upon hearing the news, Harvey himself felt conflicted. The news that Marcus was getting the divorce wasn’t news, but deep down he had still hoped he could patch things up with his wife. He would never admit it, but he had always admired his brother’s relationship with his wife, seeing it as a kind of ideal that he could never achieve. It had all came crumbling down when he learned about the divorce. But still, he was glad they would resolve the issue of the children’s custody without too much damage.
“Harvey, I know you’ve done a lot already, and you’re probably the reason they chose to settle this friendly in the first place”, his mother continued, “but will you look at the agreement they reach and make sure neither of them can get out of it ?”, she then asked. “They might have agreed to stop with the lawyers, but they’re not lawyers themselves, and I’d like to make sure that whatever agreement they reach, it’s what’s best for the children”. Harvey looked at his mother, a bit admirative. Who would’ve thought, a mere five years ago, that he would hear these words coming out of her mouth ? That she would ask for his help to protect the children ? In this moment, he was really glad that he’d listened to Donna’s advice and reached out to her. He put a reassuring hand over hers.
“Don’t worry mom, I’ll call Marcus and have him send me the documents as soon as they’ve reached an agreement so I can take a look and approve it”, he told her. She shook her head, grateful.
“Thanks Harvey”. She looked at him and stayed quiet for a few moments, as if she was pondering on whether or not she should tell him what she wanted to.
“What is it ?”, he asked her, noticing her expression.
“It’s just that we’ve talked about a lot of things over the past hour, including the situation back in Boston, and the situation at the firm, but there is one thing we haven’t talked about, and you know it...”. Harvey did know what she was referring to, he had just hoped the subject wouldn’t come up. Talking about personal matters always made him somewhat uncomfortable, most of all with this mother, with whom he had been estranged for so long. But he had to dive in at some point. He said nothing in reply, but let her ask what she needed to.
“What happened with Paula, Harvey ?”, his mother asked, “I’ve gathered she’s not part of your life anymore, but you haven’t told me what happened. I thought you were happy with her”, she added. Then she tilted her head, in a very Harvey-esque way, and continued, “Was it because of what I said the last time ?”. She sounded a bit guilty.
“Yes and no”, replied Harvey honestly. “It’s absolutely not your fault whatsoever, you didn’t know”, he reassured her, “but we did split up shortly after our dinner”.
“Do you mind if I ask what happened ?”, she enquired. Harvey considered telling her to mind her business for a minute, but decided against it.
“She told me she felt threatened by me working with Donna”, he admitted. She nodded slowly.
“And was she right ?”, she then asked. She was a clever woman Lily Specter. Harvey hadn’t talked about Donna with her much, because they hadn’t had that many deep conversations, but she somehow knew that Donna was a vital piece of Harvey’s life. Maybe she had talked to Marcus about it, Harvey didn’t know.
“You know I wouldn't have done anything with Donna while I was seeing Paula”, he deflected, riled up as always when someone mentioned infidelity.
“I know you would never make the same mistake I did Harvey”, tried to calm his mother, “that’s not what I meant. I meant would you have wanted something to happen with Donna if you hadn’t been seeing Paula ?”. Harvey stayed silent, unsure what to say. He never was when the subject of his relationship with Donna was on the table.
“I don’t know what to tell you mom”, he confessed, “the truth is Donna and I have always had a complicated relationship, but I don’t know what we are to each other exactly.”
“Well, do you want to hear what I think ?”, suggested his mother
“No offense mom”, Harvey chuckled, “but you’re not the best judge of character. And you’ve never even met Donna”, he added.
“Fair enough”, she replied with a smile, not the least bit offended, “But from what Marcus told me I think I know the kind of woman she is. And you don’t have to act on anything I tell you, but who knows ? Maybe it’ll help”. Harvey slightly nodded, a silent request for her to go on.
“From what I can see, you’re two people who have worked with and trusted each other for more than a decade. And correct me if I’m wrong, but neither of you has been committed in a long-lasting relationship during that period”. Harvey said nothing, she was right. Even his relationship with Paula, and hers with Mark, probably the two most important they’d had, had ended up badly.
“Do you really think that’s a coincidence ?”, his mother continued, although that was probably rhetorical. “You’re not getting any younger Harvey”. He shook his head in disbelief while giving her the side-eye, clearly offended. His mother chuckled at the sight.
“I don’t mean that you look old, goodness gracious you could probably fool people into believing you’re 25. But life is short”, she added on a more serious tone, “So maybe it’s time for you to ask yourself, what do you want to do with your life ? And where do you see yourself ten years from now ? Still alone, happily seated at the top of the hill, while life passes you by ?”. Her words were harsh but true.
“There’s nothing wrong with being at the top”, he replied dryly, “and I’m not alone, the people at the firm are my family”. Although that statement started to sound less and less true, as people kept leaving the firm, and him.
“But don’t you get it ? They all have a family of their own ! Mike and Rachel are married and starting their family thousands of miles away”. Harvey flinched at the reminder, “Zane is married and will probably retire in the next few years, your friend Alex is married with children, and now you’re telling me Louis is about to be a father !”. Harvey saw the pattern in his mother’s speech, but didn’t like that she insinuated that he was the only one putting the firm’s interest before anything else.
“Well I’m not the only one. Katrina doesn’t have a family, neither does Samantha, I think, and neither does...”, he trailed off
“Donna”, his mother cut him off, “I know, that was the whole point of this conversation". She tilted her head, a knowing smile on her face.
“Well mom, I’m glad you told me what you needed to, but that’s not how these things go”, his tone was cold now, and his mother knew the caring and sharing moment was over, “people don’t get together just because they’re both single and getting old, as you said. I love this firm, and so does Donna, but for now, that’s the only relationship we need to have. Now if you don’t mind, I’d like to change the subject”. His mother didn’t insist, she wasn’t about to get into another fight with her son about a matter that didn’t even directly concern her. All she wanted was for him to be happy, and from she had learned about Donna and her relationship with her son, she sounded like the most apt to do just that. But until he realized that, she wasn’t going to push him. So she changed the subject, and the tone was light for the rest of their meal. When they left the restaurant, they parted friendly, and promised to meet again before she went back to Boston.