"Quinn, I have asked you to stop telling people that. You are not my fianc�," Blaine stated wearily.

"Yet. I am not your fianc� yet. One of these days it's going to be true." Quinn greeted Helen with a kiss on the cheek before sinking onto a chair next to Rachel.

Blaine looked as if he wanted to argue with her further, but he just sighed deeply instead. "Kurt, Quinn is an old friend of the family. Her great-great-great-grandfather was one of the original partners in Anderson Steel. Both Quinn and her father work for the company today. She likes to try and stir up the pot with this whole 'fianc�' thing, but she knows well and good that she isn't qualified for the position. She doesn't have the necessary equipment."

Rachel sniggered at Blaine's comment, but Helen did not seem amused. "Blaine, please, there may be a time and a place for such crude talk, but it is certainly not here and not now."

"You are right, mother. I apologize. On that note, I think that Kurt and I should go get cleaned up for lunch, which will leave you ladies just enough time to come up with a list of questions to ask him during the interrogation, I mean, lunch."

Kurt smiled and nodded politely to the three women before following Blaine out the door and up the stairs to the bedrooms. As they made their way down the hallway, Blaine filled Kurt in with more information on Quinn.

"Quinn is an executive in our marketing department and her father was appointed acting-CEO after my father died. Their family is very traditional and they want an Anderson back in control of the company, but only one who is sure to start producing a brood of little CEOs-in-waiting. I don't exactly fit that bill, given obvious reasons, but Quinn won't let it go. Her father wants her to be an Anderson and she is willing to put up with a husband who can't be in love her in order to have the power that comes along with the Anderson name. She doesn't care about me, just the title. I vacillate between being disgusted at her greed and power mongering and being impressed by her dedication to her goals."

The last was said with definite amusement and Blaine didn't seem overly concerned with the situation, but Kurt still felt a twinge of doubt. "So you aren't really considering marrying her?"

"I…not really, it's just... It is very important to my mother that I take over the company and the board won't support me unless Quinn and I marry. I am trying to find other ways to convince them and get them on my side, but if it comes down to the wire I…I'm not sure what I will do. It's not like I am involved with anyone and have to factor them into the decision and if it is the only way…"

"But it isn't like if you married her you would actually have kids together." Kurt struggled to keep his tone free of any judgment, but he hasn't sure if he succeeded.

"No, but the board doesn't have to know that. I'm sure we could convince them that I had 'seen the light' and started liking girls." They reached their bedrooms and each paused in front of their corresponding door. "Why don't we meet back here in 15 minutes?"

Kurt nodded and closed the bedroom door behind him. He couldn't believe that Blaine would seriously consider, even as a last resort, marrying Quinn. It would sentence both of them to a life of cold, silent dinners, resentment and eventual infidelity. He had witnessed many such marriages of convenience over the years and found it hard to believe that someone could still see it is a viable option, especially now that gay couples didn't have to hide away in shame and, in some areas, could actually get married themselves. No, this was a bad idea and Kurt was just going to have to find a way to help Blaine reach his goals another way.

Blaine washed up and changed into light gray dress pants with a red, black and white striped cardigan and a black bowtie. He was just about to leave the room when he caught a glance of himself in the mirror and realized that his hair was still un-styled and a riot of curls covered his head. He knew his mother preferred him with a more restrained hairstyle, so he grabbed a bottle of gel from the bathroom and ruthlessly tamed the curls into submission. With that done he walked back into the hallway to find Kurt already waiting for him. He had also changed his clothes and was now wearing dark gray dress pants, a slim fit white button-up with a gray front placket, and black waistcoat.

"I wasn't dressed appropriately earlier," Kurt lamented. "Part of looking fabulous is being dressed correctly for the setting. No wonder your mother looked at me as if I were a bug to be examined."

"Much improved. Though don't get me wrong. I did appreciate the other outfit, but you are right that this one is more my mother's style. Shall we?" Blaine swept an arm towards the staircase. As they walked, Blaine could see Kurt making furtive glances at his hair. His face wore a definite smirk, but he didn't comment, for which Blaine was eternally grateful. Once back on the main floor, he led Kurt off to informal dining room, where the ladies were already seated around the table. Just as Blaine had predicted, the interrogation began almost immediately.

"Kurt, I believe Blaine said your last name is Hummel?" Helen asked. "Would I know your family, dear?"

"No, that would be unlikely. I don't have much family left and what I do have is scattered all over."

"I am sorry to hear that. Are you from the Chicago area originally?"

"I've lived all over the world, so I don't really call any one place home. I did live in Ohio for several years, though, which is as close as I got to Chicago."

Helen looked like she might press further on the subject, but Quinn, who had obviously been briefed on Kurt while the men were changing, took advantage of the brief pause to ask her own question. "How did you know Peter? I gather the two of you were… close?" She arched an eyebrow delicately as she spoke, the implication she was making an obvious one and Blaine felt defensive on Kurt's behalf, even though he himself had once thought the same thing of Kurt and Peter's relationship. He was about to set Quinn straight on the matter when Kurt responded.

"I guess you could say we were close, yes. I work as a ghost writer and had been working with Peter for about a year on his memoirs. He lived such a rich life and was excited to be putting his story down on paper. When he started to get really ill I came to stay with him, since he was no longer able to make it into my office and it was becoming obvious that time was of the essence. After he passed I stayed to finish up some research and had been corresponding with Blaine about the house, so when he came to tie up the loose ends of the estate I made sure to meet up with him. I realized that he could prove invaluable in filling in some of the gaps in Peter's story and I have so much writing left to do that he invited me to come stay for a while to finish up." He turned to Helen at this point. "I hope that my being here isn't an inconvenience. I had been planning on getting a hotel, but Blaine couldn't stop talking about what a gracious hostess you are and how you have all this room in your lovely home. My being here is the most convenient for him if we are going to be collaborating on the book, but if this is in any way a problem please let me know and I can make other arrangements."

Blaine watched as the emotions subtly played out on his mother's face. He knew she wasn't thrilled about having a houseguest, especially a long term one, but Kurt had masterfully backed her into a corner by calling her a gracious hostess and implying that his decision to stay was only made to fit in with Blaine's needs.

"Of course you are welcome here. Any friend of Peter's is a friend of ours. Please stay as long as you like in order to finish the book."

The ladies took a break from their questioning to enjoy the delicious food that had been served by the personal chef and catch Blaine up on what he had missed while he was away. As he ate and listened, Kurt took his time examining each of the women. He thought he understood Helen pretty well. She was obviously used to a certain high level of society and good manners had been engrained into her from a very early age. Kurt had actually spent quite a bit of time with people like her in the past and knew how to handle her. His challenge was going to be in melting the icy walls she kept up, which were probably higher and thicker since her husband's death. He could see the sorrow on her face, detailed in the lines of fatigue and shadows beneath her eyes. She hid her emotions behind a serene mask, but her love for Blaine and Rachel was there in every look she gave them, along with something else. A frantic look entered her eyes at certain moments when she looked at them, as if she was afraid that they would disappear if she looked away for too long.

Unlike Helen, Rachel wore her emotions on her sleeve (a sleeve that was part of the most god-awful combination of expensive designer clothes that Kurt had ever seen. How anyone could make designer garments look that bad was beyond him). She was hostile to Kurt, if the little glares she kept shooting him when she thought no one was looking were any indication, but Kurt wasn't sure yet why she had taken a dislike to him. She looked at Blaine as if he hung the moon, she face lighting up every time his attention turned to her. Kurt wondered for a second if she had a crush on her older cousin, but quickly discarded the thought. He saw hero worship and definitely saw love, but it was not romantic. He thought about how Blaine had described her as 'challenging' and now knew just how correct that statement had been.

Finally he turned his thoughts to Quinn. Up close Kurt could see that she was one of the most beautiful women he had ever seen, with brilliant green eyes and lovely skin, but there was a hard expression in her eyes that kept her from being truly stunning. Kurt noted that while her ombre dress that graduated from white on the top to black with white embroidery towards the hemline was very chic, he would have gone with something a little more edgy that a pearl necklace. He could sense that she was actually going to be the biggest challenge. She had plans for Blaine and probably saw Kurt as a severe threat to those plans, if for no other reason than he 'had the right equipment'. He watched her closely, noting the she had the same impeccable manners and posture as the other two women, but every one of her movements had a sharp edge to it. Her back was a little too straight, her fingers clenched too tightly around her silverware, her words a little too clipped.

Kurt was still looking at Quinn when a new visitor appeared and he was surprised by her reaction. As the man entered the room, her beautiful green eyes widened, then immediately narrowed into an icy glare. The napkin she had been holding up to her lips dropped to the floor unnoticed and her upraised hand began to tremble. She quickly dropped it into her lap, but it was too late to hide the shaking from Kurt. He wondered what it was about their new guest that had garnered such a reaction.

The man was a little rougher around the edges than someone Kurt would expect to see at the Anderson home. He wore a pair of faded blue jeans and a t-shirt that seemed to advertise a music concert. His head was shaved on the sides, leaving a strip of hair only down the middle. He greeted Blaine with a handshake and turned to flash a confident smile at the ladies in the room, hesitating for just a second when his eyes found Quinn. He immediately returned his attentions to Helen, his face taking on a slight smirk. "Hey, Mrs. A, lookin' good!" he smiled, wiggling both eyebrows up and down in a suggestive fashion.

"Mr. Puckerman, stop that. I am old enough to be your mother and this really isn't appropriate at all. " Despite her protests, Helen blushed, slightly flattered at the attention.

"But that is the way I like my women… aged to perfection," he retorted with a wicked twinkle in his eye.

Blaine invited the man to join them for lunch and introduced him to Kurt as Noah 'Puck' Puckerman, who was the new manager of Camp Wenatchee, the Anderson sponsored music camp. "The happiest times of my childhood were spent at that camp," Puck related as the chef added a plate of food for him on the table. "I definitely fit the 'disadvantaged' bill and would have never have had the opportunity to discover my love for music if I hadn't been sponsored by the Andersons to go. Blaine was volunteering at the same time and since I am from Chicago we were able to keep in touch even outside of camp. When the job at the camp opened up last year I jumped at the chance. Of course, it doesn't hurt that it means I get to spend more time with these lovely ladies from time to time."

Helen and Rachel smiled and twittered a little at his flirting, but Quinn grew even more remote, if that was even possible. There was definitely a story there and Kurt wondered if he would ever find out what it was.

As the meal progressed, the conversation began to flow easier, especially between Blaine and himself, but it became evident that the women were not going to make it easy on them. When the bantering between Blaine and Kurt took on a slightly flirtatious note while talking about countries they had visited, Quinn pulled Blaine's attention with a question about work. When Blaine showed a little too much interest in Kurt's opinion on a song they had listened to in the car, Helen changed the subject by mentioning some improvements she wanted to make to the grounds in the spring. When Kurt sent Blaine into a laughing fit with a threat to perform a dance routine to Beyonc�'s Single Ladies, Rachel sidetracked the conversation with memories of a childhood dance recital. Kurt began to feel like he was running an obstacle course, with each woman doing her best to prevent him from reaching his goal. He tried to take it all in good humor though, used to the resistance and discomfort that often came with his appearance in people's lives.

After lunch, Blaine signed the paperwork that had been the purpose for Puck's visit and Puck took his leave. Blaine mentioned that the forecast was for snow in the coming days, so he asked Kurt if he would like to tour the grounds while they still had good weather. The two of them gathered up their winter coats and set about walking the manicured paths behind the house.

"You know you may have to produce a manuscript of Peter's memoirs at some point now, right?"

"I kind of backed myself into a corner there, didn't I? That's OK, I'm sure I can whip something up."

Blaine laughed at that and pointed out the swimming pool they were passing, drained and closed down for the winter. "We usually open the pool in June, so you will have to wait until then to see it in all its glory, but it is worth it. Not very practical to have an outdoor pool in Chicago, but we never remember the hassle come August."

Kurt couldn't help the thrill that shot down his spine when Blaine spoke as if it was a given that Kurt would still be with them in 6 months. He knew that the other man hadn't been totally on board with the idea of Kurt coming home with him, so his acceptance that the situation might now be a long term one was good to hear. Also, Kurt was more than able to picture Blaine in a swimsuit, lounging on one of the poolside chairs and he was excited that the possibility of seeing it in the flesh, so to speak, existed.

Kurt heard his name called from several feet away and was startled to realize that he had come to a stop at the edge of the pool. Blaine had continued walking and was now looking back at him from the head of a path that led into a wooded section of the grounds. He hurried over to other man's side, a blush darkening his cheeks. Luckily, Blaine didn't seem to notice his distraction and began to regale him with tales of forts and pirate excursions and other childhood fantasies played out in the lavish backyard. Every so often while they walked their hands would brush up against each other and Kurt had to constantly fight the urge to just reach over and grab Blaine's hand. After about 30 minutes of exploring, the men were surprised to hear their names being called from behind a hedge. Moments later, Rachel appeared, decked out in a horribly clashing hat, scarf and coat.

While Kurt was still recovering from the pain caused by her sartorial choices, Rachel pushed her way in between the two men, nearly knocking him into a snow bank, and took Blaine's arm. "So Kurt, you are ghost writing Peter's memoirs?" she asked, doubt evident in her voice. "I assume you are already a published author, then? I'd love to read some of your work, if you could give me a list."

"I have worked on several other memoirs, but I'm afraid I can't tell you which ones. Celebrities are very nervous about it getting out that they used a ghost writer, so there are strict confidentially clauses written into my contracts."

"Of course," Rachel mocked, "I totally understand. Well, I am somewhat of an expert on the biographies and memoirs of musical performers. I have read every one that has ever been published, so if you have any questions or would like my opinion on anything you have written for Peter's book, just let me know. I would be happy to lend you my insights."

Rachel turned her attentions to Blaine, clasping his arm tighter as she began telling him with stories of a charity musical performance she had taken part in over the weekend. Listening to her go on and on about herself, Kurt briefly allowed himself to picture what she would look like as a yapping Chihuahua, but found the idea too tempting, so he quickly pushed it away. Now would not be a good time for him to lose control of his powers. Blaine kept trying to bring Kurt back into the conversation, but the harder he tried the more determined Rachel was to exclude him. She pulled Blaine forward on the path so that they were no longer walking besides Kurt and focused the conversation on family stories and private jokes, all the while looking back to give quick glares in Kurt's direction. She would have continued to monopolize Blaine, but his phone suddenly rang and he slipped out of her grasp to pull it from his pocket.

When he ended the call a few minutes later he turned to Kurt with a regretful look. "That was the office. I need to finish up a report and send a few emails before the close of business today, so I'm afraid I have to cut our tour a little short. Are you ready to go back in?"

"It is such a beautiful day. Let me finish up showing Kurt around the grounds," Rachel offered. When Blaine looked a little reluctant to leave Kurt behind, she added with a charming smile, "I'll return him to the house safe and sound. I promise."

Her smile must have been convincing, because Blaine hurried off to the house, leaving Kurt and Rachel together on the path to the gazebo. Rachel slid he arm into Kurt's and tugged him towards the structure, giving him some historical information on the house and the area. When they reached the little white building she stepped inside, sat on one of the wooden seats and patted the space next to her, asking Kurt to sit also. Once he was seated she turned to him and her smile immediately changed, reminding Kurt of photo of a shark he had once seen.

"So Kurt, now that it is just the two of us, I think it is time for a heart-to-heart. I am an excellent judge of people and also a little bit psychic — just a few of my many talents — and I can tell that you haven't been telling us the truth. You may have fooled Blaine and Helen with this ghost writer story, but you aren't fooling me. I know what Peter was like, what his type was, and I don't blame you for using him as your sugar daddy, I really don't, but there is no way I am letting you sink your hooks into Blaine. Do you know how many gold diggers have tried to get at him throughout the years? Too many to count. It was actually pretty amusing at first. Before it was well known that he was gay, women would throw themselves at him everywhere we went. I almost felt sorry for them. Later of course the men started coming around, but they didn't have any more success. Blaine is too smart for that and he will see through you soon enough. I have a proposal for you, though. Let's just save ourselves the time and aggravation of suffering through this charade and come to an agreement now. How much?"

Kurt was still trying to figure out why people would come to Blaine looking to dig gold when he realized that Rachel had finally stopped talking. "How much what?" he asked.

"How much money do you want to leave now and never come back?"

The desire to turn Rachel into a yapping Chihuahua returned full force and Kurt had to close this eyes and gather himself before he was able to continue. "Rachel, while I'm sure your talent for reading people is spot on in most cases, I can assure you that in this instance you are very wrong." Kurt could hear the patronizing tone in his voice and knew it wasn't making the situation any better, but he couldn't control it. "I am not after Blaine for his gold and I can promise you that I am not looking to hurt him in any way. We are friends and he is going to help me with my project. That is all."

"Blaine doesn't need another friend. He has enough friends and he has me. His mother needs him here right now and she deserves his undivided attention. He missed a lot while he was off in New York. He missed holidays and performances and wasn't always there when we needed him. Now that he is back with us we don't need strangers coming in to try and take him away again." Rachel stopped abruptly, perhaps realizing that she had revealed too much during her tirade.

Kurt could sense her insecurities and knew there was a reason behind how she was acting, but he needed to leave before he said something to make the situation worse. He knew he had the tendency to say things he didn't mean in times of high emotion and didn't want to take that risk now. "I don't want to take Blaine away from you. I know there probably isn't anything that I can say to make you believe me right now, but it is the truth. Hopefully you will come to understand that as you get to know me better. I think it is probably best if I return to the house now. I'll see you at dinner." He stood up gracefully and stepped back onto the path.

"I wish you had never come here," Rachel cried after him.

Kurt paused and his back stiffened before he continued on back to the house, leaving Rachel alone in the gazebo.