74. Are You Challenging Me?
100 Theme Prompt: 74. Are You Challenging Me?
Author: fluffygremlin
Fandom: Suits
Characters/Pairings: Mike and Harvey
Disclaimer: This story is based on characters and situations created and owned people who are NOT me. No copyright or trademark infringement is intended and no money is being made.
Challenge Me
“Donna! Where is Mike? He’s not at his desk.” Harvey Specter made a point of not crossing his arms no matter how annoyed he was. Crossed arms leave wrinkles.
“I am not his minder,” Donna responded, not looking up from her computer. “If you can’t keep track of your puppy then maybe you need to buy him a leash.”
“Maybe I will,” Harvey grumbled as he stalked off towards the research library. He managed to have his scowl shifted into his normal nonchalant smirk by the time he spotted his wayward associate in the back of the stacks.
“You’re doing work for Louis.” He wasn’t intentionally sneaking up on Mike but the way the other man jumped was still just as satisfying.
“I…” Mike whirled around and held the heavy reference book he was holding in front of him like a shield.
“That wasn’t a question.” Harvey took the book from Mike’s hands and snapped it closed. “You’re my associate. You work for me.”
“Yea, and you weren’t here so I…” Mike reached out to grab the book back only the have Harvey pull it back father until they were nearly nose to nose.
“Made a bunch of excuses. Not interested.” Harvey turned and tossed the book on a nearby table. He was halfway to the door before he realized Mike wasn’t following. “C’mon, boy,” he called out, patting his leg as he did so. The younger man looked for a moment like he was going to protest before he sighed and did as he was told.
“I am not a dog, you know.” Mike pressed close to Harvey once he caught up with him, glancing back every now and then as they made their way to Harvey’s office, worried Louis was going to pop up behind every cubicle.
“What a shame,” Harvey said as he slid into his desk chair and settled back to watch Mike. “I suppose I’ll have to cancel the order I placed for that leather collar then.”
“I… you… collar…” Mike’s hands fluttered towards his neck a little as his brain tried to play catch up.
“Sit.” Harvey pointed at the chair across from him and couldn’t help but smirk as Mike complied without hesitation. “Good boy. Now tell me how I’m going to win this lawsuit.”
It was several hours later, long after Donna had toodle-oo’d her way to an early night off, when everything finally fell into place. Loopholes were all tidied up in one neat basket and Harvey was ready for his free-throw. Mike had slumped onto the couch after Harvey had snapped at him for pacing a potential hole into his carpet and Harvey found himself watching the other man as he stretched this way and that. The younger man’s arms reached up and back, curving his spine as he dropped his head onto the back of the couch.
Harvey certainly wasn’t staring at the way Mike’s cheap shirt pulled across his stomach and chest and he certainly didn’t shift in his seat as Mike groaned before straightening up.
“We should go for a drink,” Mike said, grinning at Harvey as he stood up. “Celebrate the win we’re going to have.”
“Ever hear that old adage about counting eggs?” Harvey leaned back further in his chair and crossed his arms over his chest.
“Of course but this is a slam dunk. You know we’re going to win.”
“Of course I am going to win. That doesn’t mean the rookie gets to pre-game.”
“I just think…”
“Go home, Mike.”
“But…”
“Home, Michael. Now.” Harvey’s voice leaves no room for argument and he’s pleased as Mike quickly grabs his bag and slips the horrible thing over his head. His smirk becomes a full blown grin when the other man glances over before hurrying out the door without another word. “Good boy,” he whispers into the empty office.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
“If you keep disappearing then I’m going to order a bell to go with your collar.” Mike didn’t jump this time when Harvey whispered in his ear and the older man wasn’t sure if he was annoyed or proud.
“I’m still not a dog,” the other man replied, highlighting a passage on the page in front of him and intentionally ignoring Harvey’s close presence.
“No, but you are my associate and as my associate you are here to serve my needs. Not Louis’.” Harvey chose to ignore the way his voice came out far more growly than usual and instead focused on Mike and how he was practically scoffing at him.
“Possessive much?” Mike asked, finally looking up at Harvey. The older man cocked his head and Mike did his best not to shudder under his intensely dark gaze.
“Did you want a red collar or a black one?”
“Right. Be here when you need me. Lesson learned.”
“Good boy. Now finish that up so Louis stops pouting and then get back to the briefs I gave you this morning. I want them to be perfect before we meet the client tonight.” Harvey began to walk away before spinning on his heel, “Oh, Mike, behave yourself the rest of the day and I might let you sit at the adult table.”
“Behave yourself, puppy,” Mike muttered to himself when Harvey turned back around.
“I heard that,” the older man called over his shoulder.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Mike resists the urge to straighten his tie as he obediently follows Harvey through the ritzy restaurant to their latest client meeting. The older man nods at several people as they go by, most of them women, all of them attractive.
“Charles!” Harvey greeted the silver-haired man with a firm handshake just this side of bruising. “Great to see you again. Allow me to introduce my new associate, Mike Ross. Mike, this is the man paying for dinner tonight so play nice.” Mike put out his own hand and tried to ignore the way the client was looking at him as he held on far longer than Emily Post would appreciate.
“Harvey, finally found a boy who can live up to your high standards. Took you long enough.”
“I’m picky,” Harvey said as he surreptitiously guided Mike away from the other man and towards an empty seat.
“As I well know. He looks decent enough at least. I look forward to seeing more of him.”
“Now, now, Charles. Don’t scare him off before we get through the appetizer.” Harvey nodded to the waitress standing several tables over and Mike felt a shudder of relief as the other men turned their attention to the liquor menu.
“Do I want to know what that was all about?” He whispered to Harvey midway through the meal after Charles had excused himself to take a phone call.
“No.”
“But he’s…” Mike pulled a face and could see Harvey fighting his usual smirk.
“Drop it, puppy,” the other man said in a low voice.
“Harvey, you…”
“Do we really need to discuss your lack of listening skills right now?” Harvey growled into his ear.
“Fine.” Mike Ross most certainly did not slump back into his seat with crossed arms like a three year old.
“Good boy.”
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Mike dropped his head onto his desk and groaned into the paperwork that was padding the impact.
“Bruised foreheads aren’t exactly attractive.” Mike could see Rachel out of the corner of his eye, her arms full of files as she leaned a hip against his cubicle wall.
“Harvey’s going to fire me,” he said woefully.
“Harvey isn’t…”
“I slapped a client.” Mike’s words were muffled by a pile of briefs.
“Sorry?”
“I slapped a client,” he repeated. “On the hand. He was handsy and I slapped him.”
“Handsy?”
“He kept…” Mike shuddered. “He kept touching my leg and… stuff.”
“And stuff…”
“Assorted dangly stuff.”
“Which client was this?”
“Feldekamp.”
“Feldekamp? Charles Feldekamp?” Rachel looked around a moment before leaning farther into Mike’s personal space. “Around here the associates call him Chuck Feel-em-up. He has more money than God and gets off on being a lecherous old man. You slapping him was probably the highlight of his week.”
“You should have seen Harvey though. He looked like he was going to murder someone with his salad fork.”
“That’s just ridiculous.” Harvey appeared behind Rachel, who straightened up quickly and muttered something about Louis before disappearing so fast Mike was certain she’s slipped through a floor board.
“Harvey, I…” Mike stood up and only winced slightly as the single ear bud he’d been wearing pulled out and dropped back down to his desk.
“I couldn’t have killed anyone with my salad fork considering we were half-way through the entrée when you decided to assault one of Jessica’s favorite clients.”
“He… I…” Mike’s hands went repeatedly down the length of his tie as he sputtered.
“Now that I think about it, the dessert fork wouldn’t have really worked either. Too small.” Harvey slid his hands into his pockets as he smirked at his associate. “Not to mention I’m not about to get blood on a new suit. What would Rene say?”
“He would blame me.” Harvey nodded. “Although I still don’t see how it’s my fault that your client felt the need to cop a feel.”
“That’s what you get for seducing older men, Mikey. You’re way out of your league.”
“Maybe I should have went to fake-escort school instead of fake-lawyer school.” He hissed, glancing around to make sure no one was eavesdropping on their conversation.
“They have those?” Mike was about to retort with something quite witty when Harvey waved him off. “We’ll discuss your love life some other time. Feldekamp wants the contract ready by this afternoon so get on it. And before you try to make some more really pointless excuses,” Harvey held up a hand to stop Mike once again, “I feel I must advise you that I have a newspaper in my office and I’m not afraid to use it.”
“You know, some of the things you say violate at least three addendums to the company harassment policy.”
“Only if you have a twisted mind, Mikey,” Harvey said as he turned and began to wade through the sea of peons.
“Which you do.”
“So go file a complaint. I’m sure Louis would be thrilled by that.”
“I’m so sure,” Mike said as he hurried around his cubicle to follow after Harvey. “I’ll be all “Harvey is mean and calls me a puppy and threatens to spank me.’ And Louis will be all ‘And how does that make you feel?’” He almost ran into Harvey’s back as he stopped in front of the elevators.
“I said beat, not spank. You haven’t earned spankings yet.” Harvey stepped into the now arrived elevator and Mike rolled his eyes as other associates hurried off. “And you forgot about the collar.”
A/N - This got away from me a bit and didn't go where it was supposed to. Guess that means I'll just have to write more. Feedback is appreciated!
Author: fluffygremlin
Fandom: Suits
Characters/Pairings: Mike and Harvey
Disclaimer: This story is based on characters and situations created and owned people who are NOT me. No copyright or trademark infringement is intended and no money is being made.
Challenge Me
“Donna! Where is Mike? He’s not at his desk.” Harvey Specter made a point of not crossing his arms no matter how annoyed he was. Crossed arms leave wrinkles.
“I am not his minder,” Donna responded, not looking up from her computer. “If you can’t keep track of your puppy then maybe you need to buy him a leash.”
“Maybe I will,” Harvey grumbled as he stalked off towards the research library. He managed to have his scowl shifted into his normal nonchalant smirk by the time he spotted his wayward associate in the back of the stacks.
“You’re doing work for Louis.” He wasn’t intentionally sneaking up on Mike but the way the other man jumped was still just as satisfying.
“I…” Mike whirled around and held the heavy reference book he was holding in front of him like a shield.
“That wasn’t a question.” Harvey took the book from Mike’s hands and snapped it closed. “You’re my associate. You work for me.”
“Yea, and you weren’t here so I…” Mike reached out to grab the book back only the have Harvey pull it back father until they were nearly nose to nose.
“Made a bunch of excuses. Not interested.” Harvey turned and tossed the book on a nearby table. He was halfway to the door before he realized Mike wasn’t following. “C’mon, boy,” he called out, patting his leg as he did so. The younger man looked for a moment like he was going to protest before he sighed and did as he was told.
“I am not a dog, you know.” Mike pressed close to Harvey once he caught up with him, glancing back every now and then as they made their way to Harvey’s office, worried Louis was going to pop up behind every cubicle.
“What a shame,” Harvey said as he slid into his desk chair and settled back to watch Mike. “I suppose I’ll have to cancel the order I placed for that leather collar then.”
“I… you… collar…” Mike’s hands fluttered towards his neck a little as his brain tried to play catch up.
“Sit.” Harvey pointed at the chair across from him and couldn’t help but smirk as Mike complied without hesitation. “Good boy. Now tell me how I’m going to win this lawsuit.”
It was several hours later, long after Donna had toodle-oo’d her way to an early night off, when everything finally fell into place. Loopholes were all tidied up in one neat basket and Harvey was ready for his free-throw. Mike had slumped onto the couch after Harvey had snapped at him for pacing a potential hole into his carpet and Harvey found himself watching the other man as he stretched this way and that. The younger man’s arms reached up and back, curving his spine as he dropped his head onto the back of the couch.
Harvey certainly wasn’t staring at the way Mike’s cheap shirt pulled across his stomach and chest and he certainly didn’t shift in his seat as Mike groaned before straightening up.
“We should go for a drink,” Mike said, grinning at Harvey as he stood up. “Celebrate the win we’re going to have.”
“Ever hear that old adage about counting eggs?” Harvey leaned back further in his chair and crossed his arms over his chest.
“Of course but this is a slam dunk. You know we’re going to win.”
“Of course I am going to win. That doesn’t mean the rookie gets to pre-game.”
“I just think…”
“Go home, Mike.”
“But…”
“Home, Michael. Now.” Harvey’s voice leaves no room for argument and he’s pleased as Mike quickly grabs his bag and slips the horrible thing over his head. His smirk becomes a full blown grin when the other man glances over before hurrying out the door without another word. “Good boy,” he whispers into the empty office.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
“If you keep disappearing then I’m going to order a bell to go with your collar.” Mike didn’t jump this time when Harvey whispered in his ear and the older man wasn’t sure if he was annoyed or proud.
“I’m still not a dog,” the other man replied, highlighting a passage on the page in front of him and intentionally ignoring Harvey’s close presence.
“No, but you are my associate and as my associate you are here to serve my needs. Not Louis’.” Harvey chose to ignore the way his voice came out far more growly than usual and instead focused on Mike and how he was practically scoffing at him.
“Possessive much?” Mike asked, finally looking up at Harvey. The older man cocked his head and Mike did his best not to shudder under his intensely dark gaze.
“Did you want a red collar or a black one?”
“Right. Be here when you need me. Lesson learned.”
“Good boy. Now finish that up so Louis stops pouting and then get back to the briefs I gave you this morning. I want them to be perfect before we meet the client tonight.” Harvey began to walk away before spinning on his heel, “Oh, Mike, behave yourself the rest of the day and I might let you sit at the adult table.”
“Behave yourself, puppy,” Mike muttered to himself when Harvey turned back around.
“I heard that,” the older man called over his shoulder.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Mike resists the urge to straighten his tie as he obediently follows Harvey through the ritzy restaurant to their latest client meeting. The older man nods at several people as they go by, most of them women, all of them attractive.
“Charles!” Harvey greeted the silver-haired man with a firm handshake just this side of bruising. “Great to see you again. Allow me to introduce my new associate, Mike Ross. Mike, this is the man paying for dinner tonight so play nice.” Mike put out his own hand and tried to ignore the way the client was looking at him as he held on far longer than Emily Post would appreciate.
“Harvey, finally found a boy who can live up to your high standards. Took you long enough.”
“I’m picky,” Harvey said as he surreptitiously guided Mike away from the other man and towards an empty seat.
“As I well know. He looks decent enough at least. I look forward to seeing more of him.”
“Now, now, Charles. Don’t scare him off before we get through the appetizer.” Harvey nodded to the waitress standing several tables over and Mike felt a shudder of relief as the other men turned their attention to the liquor menu.
“Do I want to know what that was all about?” He whispered to Harvey midway through the meal after Charles had excused himself to take a phone call.
“No.”
“But he’s…” Mike pulled a face and could see Harvey fighting his usual smirk.
“Drop it, puppy,” the other man said in a low voice.
“Harvey, you…”
“Do we really need to discuss your lack of listening skills right now?” Harvey growled into his ear.
“Fine.” Mike Ross most certainly did not slump back into his seat with crossed arms like a three year old.
“Good boy.”
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Mike dropped his head onto his desk and groaned into the paperwork that was padding the impact.
“Bruised foreheads aren’t exactly attractive.” Mike could see Rachel out of the corner of his eye, her arms full of files as she leaned a hip against his cubicle wall.
“Harvey’s going to fire me,” he said woefully.
“Harvey isn’t…”
“I slapped a client.” Mike’s words were muffled by a pile of briefs.
“Sorry?”
“I slapped a client,” he repeated. “On the hand. He was handsy and I slapped him.”
“Handsy?”
“He kept…” Mike shuddered. “He kept touching my leg and… stuff.”
“And stuff…”
“Assorted dangly stuff.”
“Which client was this?”
“Feldekamp.”
“Feldekamp? Charles Feldekamp?” Rachel looked around a moment before leaning farther into Mike’s personal space. “Around here the associates call him Chuck Feel-em-up. He has more money than God and gets off on being a lecherous old man. You slapping him was probably the highlight of his week.”
“You should have seen Harvey though. He looked like he was going to murder someone with his salad fork.”
“That’s just ridiculous.” Harvey appeared behind Rachel, who straightened up quickly and muttered something about Louis before disappearing so fast Mike was certain she’s slipped through a floor board.
“Harvey, I…” Mike stood up and only winced slightly as the single ear bud he’d been wearing pulled out and dropped back down to his desk.
“I couldn’t have killed anyone with my salad fork considering we were half-way through the entrée when you decided to assault one of Jessica’s favorite clients.”
“He… I…” Mike’s hands went repeatedly down the length of his tie as he sputtered.
“Now that I think about it, the dessert fork wouldn’t have really worked either. Too small.” Harvey slid his hands into his pockets as he smirked at his associate. “Not to mention I’m not about to get blood on a new suit. What would Rene say?”
“He would blame me.” Harvey nodded. “Although I still don’t see how it’s my fault that your client felt the need to cop a feel.”
“That’s what you get for seducing older men, Mikey. You’re way out of your league.”
“Maybe I should have went to fake-escort school instead of fake-lawyer school.” He hissed, glancing around to make sure no one was eavesdropping on their conversation.
“They have those?” Mike was about to retort with something quite witty when Harvey waved him off. “We’ll discuss your love life some other time. Feldekamp wants the contract ready by this afternoon so get on it. And before you try to make some more really pointless excuses,” Harvey held up a hand to stop Mike once again, “I feel I must advise you that I have a newspaper in my office and I’m not afraid to use it.”
“You know, some of the things you say violate at least three addendums to the company harassment policy.”
“Only if you have a twisted mind, Mikey,” Harvey said as he turned and began to wade through the sea of peons.
“Which you do.”
“So go file a complaint. I’m sure Louis would be thrilled by that.”
“I’m so sure,” Mike said as he hurried around his cubicle to follow after Harvey. “I’ll be all “Harvey is mean and calls me a puppy and threatens to spank me.’ And Louis will be all ‘And how does that make you feel?’” He almost ran into Harvey’s back as he stopped in front of the elevators.
“I said beat, not spank. You haven’t earned spankings yet.” Harvey stepped into the now arrived elevator and Mike rolled his eyes as other associates hurried off. “And you forgot about the collar.”
A/N - This got away from me a bit and didn't go where it was supposed to. Guess that means I'll just have to write more. Feedback is appreciated!