Summary

• Harvey's relationships on Suits were often doomed from the start, including his ill-fated relationship with his former therapist and his messy affair with his colleague's sister.
• While Harvey had a complicated relationship with his long-time secretary Donna, his chemistry with Zoe Lawford was unmatched and she challenged him in a way no other woman could.
• Zoe Lawford was his best love interest and their relationship had the potential to evolve into something more, but it was cut short, leaving fans wondering what could have been.

Harvey Specter (Gabriel Macht) may have ended up with Donna in Suits, but Zoe Lawford (Jacinda Barrett) was his best love interest. The legal drama follows Michael Ross (Patrick J. Adams) and Harvey Specter, the latter of which has a great reputation not only for being a great legal mind but for his chaotic romantic life. The Suits character had no shortage of love interests over the course of the nine seasons Suits was on the air. Harvey was by far the most charming character and his seemingly revolving door of love interests had a number of included a number of great characters, but Zoe Lawford left the biggest impression.

Unfortunately, Harvey was much better at navigating the law than he was with relationships. Every relationship Harvey found himself in had its own set of challenges and pitfalls, and while he simply wasn't compatible with a number of his romantic partners, they all led to Harvey learning different ways he needed to grow personally. However, in the midst of the countless tumultuous relationships, there was one clear standout and fan favorite. While Harvey married Donna in Suits, Zoe Lawford, who appeared in Suit's early seasons, left a lasting impression, and she proved that she was Harvey's perfect life partner even if they didn't end up together.

Harvey's Love Interests Were Often Doomed

A lot of Harvey’s relationships and flings on Suits seemed doomed from the start. In the seventh season of Suits, Harvey started seeing former therapist Dr. Paula Agard (Christina Cole) with whom he spent the previous two seasons talking about his mother issues in an ill-fated relationship, which not only went against everything the Hippocratic Oath stands for but was extremely creepy too. Another not-so-bright choice of Harvey’s was his decision to sleep with Esther Litt (Amy Acker), the sister of his colleague and frenemy Louis Litt (Rick Hoffman) – a messy move that resulted in a huge fallout between Harvey and Louis brawling in the office.

Harvey’s Suits season 3 love interest Dana ‘Scottie’ Scott (Abigail Spencer) was a slightly better fit for the lawyer. The pair first dated when they were studying at Harvard Law School and rekindled their relationship in the latter half of season 3 after their paths crossed several times during the first two seasons. Their relationship got complicated when Harvey got Scottie a job at his firm, and the relationship became fraught with power struggles and trust issues, which led to the couple inevitably breaking up. The original Suits plan for Harvey was for him to actually end up with Scottie, but it was nothing like the spark between Harvey and Zoe Lawford.

Similarly, his relationship with Donna Paulsen (Sarah Rafferty), who was his faithful secretary, was another terrible dating choice that seemed doomed from the start. Season 7, episode 10, "Donna," saw the two share the most ionate kiss in the series, which immediately had audiences rooting for the relationship to last. This relationship once again led to several work-related obstacles despite their irrefutable chemistry. It was eight seasons before Donna and Harvey's Suits relationship happened, but they should have remained colleagues only, and it was a mistake that both characters will likely regret in the future.

Why Zoe Was Harvey's Best Love Interest

Zoe Lawford was Harvey Specter’s Suits season 2 love interest, and while Harvey had his fair share of complicated relationships, Zoe Lawford stood out as the ideal partner for the lawyer. Harvey and Zoe were first romantically acquainted when she started working at his law firm years earlier, but that off-screen romance didn't last. However, they reunited in season 2 after Harvey brought her on board as a jury consultant in a case brought against the firm, and they soon picked up where they’d left off. Unfortunately, bad timing tore them apart, and though their rekindled relationship only lasted a few episodes the chemistry between the pair was perfect.

Zoe challenged Harvey's playboy characters in a way that no other woman, before or after her, was able to achieve. Zoe also matched Harvey's wit in a way that no other woman could, and their chemistry and banter were completely on another level. The relationship felt genuine and every time they were on screen together, it was electric. Of all the women who have ed through Harvey's life, none were more exciting or refreshing as the season 2 character. What makes it worse is that there was never any real reason why Harvey didn't try to make it last with Zoe Lawford.

This incredible chemistry between Harvey and Zoe Lawford was partly because Jacinda Barrett is married to Gabriel Macht in real life, so the spark between them was very real. Of course, Harvey ended up with his long-time secretary and confidant Donna in the Suits finale, and that was a satisfying end for a pocket of fans that call themselves "Darvey shippers," but it would’ve been interesting to see how Harvey and Zoe’s relationship might’ve evolved had it been given more than three Suits episodes. The relationship could have blossomed into something more, and it's wasted potential that the writers didn't capitalize on Barrett and Macht's real-life romance.