He would get punched, Kurt decided as the silence lasted. Punched, not slapped—Blaine had caused a minor scandal when he had chosen to box in school instead of fencing like his father and brother. Kurt always seemed to remember these details too late, although he probably would have taken the risk anyway.

Involuntarily, his hand rose to his nose as if to feel it in its current form for the last time.

Then Blaine smiled. "I accept your offer, and gladly."

"Oh," Kurt said and dropped his hand. "For a moment, I thought you'd punch me."

"I wouldn't do that. I'm...flattered to receive such an offer from someone who is, from everything I heard, a master in the arts of love."

A master in the arts of love would not blush at these words. "I don't think anyone can be a master in these arts. I would merely call myself...an enthusiastic student, perhaps."

He smiled, then frowned. "What do you mean, from all you've heard?"

Blaine smiled, sipping at his tea before he answered. "My brother was full of praise."

"Your brother -" Kurt nearly choked on his tea and had to hastily dab at his mouth with a napkin before he continued. Curse Cooper and his big mouth. "You know about your brother and me. That makes things easier. And a little strange."

Blaine nodded. "Especially since I remember him saying that he taught you everything. You know how my brother is."

Kurt snorted indelicately and made a face. "So, if your brother taught me, and I teach you, that would mean..."

"That indirectly, my brother would teach me the arts of love. Ew. Luckily, I don't give much credit as to the amount of truth in that statement."

"So you still want to do this?"

"I do. Although I would appreciate if we could stop talking about my brother now."

"That would be good, yes. So. How do you want this to go? What do you want to learn?"

"Everything there is to learn. I want to be able to talk to a man I'm attracted to without making a fool of myself. I want to be able to seduce him, and I want to learn how to pleasure a man and how to find pleasure myself. I've not accepted your offer to stop half way, my lord."

Kurt had to swallow. There was something incredibly arousing about hearing Blaine state his desires so boldly, and Kurt knew that he would be a very ardent and willing student. The whole arrangement sounded exactly to his taste; it would ease both boredom and loneliness, and at the end of a time period yet to be determined he would hand a hopefully satisfied Blaine over to the man he hoped to conquer. There would be no further commitments for Kurt after that, and a lot of amusement and diversion in the meantime. It was perfect.

Details could be cleared later; for now, he wanted Blaine to realize something.

"Please hear me out now, and trust that I am not fishing for compliments. Am I right in the assumption that since you so graciously accepted my...rather unusual offer, you are not completely repulsed by my appearance?"

"Repulsed?" Blaine exclaimed, almost indignant. Kurt could indeed not have wished for a more enthusiastic response had he been looking to boast his own confidence, instead of Blaine's. "You are a very handsome man, my lord, you must be aware of that."

"I am," Kurt said, grinning. "But I thank you all the same. Now, even though I am not the man you love, would you say that you are attracted to me?"

"I...of course I am. Having you as my teacher is...I am very much attracted to you."

Kurt quickly hid his smile behind a napkin. Blaine blushing and stumbling over his words was adorable, but it wouldn't do to appear to be laughing at him.

"And yet," he said, "you have just told me in clear words, without fussing, boldly and confidently, what you expect from our...arrangement. In other words, you have talked to a man you are attracted to without making a fool of yourself, and that about something much more...shall we say, delicate then you normally would in polite society."

Blaine blushed, looking down. "It's not the same."

"Maybe not. But it's a start." He took a last sip of tea, then set the cup down. "Now, since you accepted my offer, you should come sit beside me. Sitting in that chair over there is playing hard to get, and we're past that point."

But when Blaine hesitantly stood up from his chair, he held up a hand to stop him.

"Ask me first. I could be expecting someone else, and it would be rude to just take their seat."

With a small smile that showed he appreciated the absurdity of the situation, but was game anyway, Blaine walked round the table, stopped at the small couch Kurt was sitting on, and sketched a short bow.

"Is this seat taken, my lord?" he asked.

Kurt smiled and made an inviting gesture. "Please feel free, sir."

Blaine sat down on the edge of the seat, as far away from Kurt as was possible in the small space. Kurt shook his head.

"You're still playing hard to get. Come closer, let our legs brush. Maybe touch my shoulder to steady yourself."

Blaine obeyed, but hesitantly. "Wouldn't that be...awfully bold?"

"Maybe, but as you said, the time for innocence is over. Now, you talk. About anything you like, following the rules of society, except if you wish, you should flirt a little, make some innuendos. This way, you can see if he wants you without asking him directly. Now, depending on...when do you see him again?"

Blaine hesitated a little. "He is expected at my brother's wedding, about a month from now."

"Oh, yes, I received an invitation for that as well, no doubt issued with a great deal of smugness about my still uncommitted state. Although I was, I confess, surprised to hear about Cooper's nuptials. He did not seem the type to settle down soon."

"My father made his wishes very clear before he died. Cooper extended the engagement period as much as could be regarded decent, but the truth is, Catherine is good for him. I think they will be happy."

"I hope they will be."

Kurt didn't know if it was accidentally or deliberately, but Blaine's leg brushed against his with greater frequency, and once he even thought he felt Blaine's hand on his back for a moment. He smiled. He couldn't be sure, but if it was deliberate, Blaine was a very fast learner indeed. He decided to take things further.

"If you have made it this far without the other man finding an excuse to get away, you should invite him to go somewhere more quiet. If this happens at your brother's wedding, you won't have too long to talk to him in private, so you should act quickly lest you are disturbed and you have to wait for another occasion to see him again." He shrugged, grinning. "You could be indelicate and write to him, but..."

Blaine blushed again. "You have seen I'm not very good at writing."

Kurt put his hand on the back of Blaine's neck and then let it glide down his back before he took it away. "No, you are much better at talking and...other things."

There was no mistaking now that the pressure against his leg was real and deliberate. Blaine didn't meet his eyes, but there was a small smile playing around his lips.

Kurt smiled, nudging Blaine's leg with his. "Ask me to go somewhere more quiet."

Blaine leaned close, as one might do in a crowded room where it was loud and hard to understand each other, and then even closer so that Kurt could feel his breath on his skin. "My lord, would you care to accompany me on a stroll around the gardens?"

Kurt nodded approvingly. "Not too obvious, but still fairly clear. But are the gardens suited to your purpose?"

"The wedding will take place at our house. The gardens are quite extensive and have some very secluded spots."

"Then, dear sir, I would love to have you show them to me."

They did not go to the gardens, of course. It was still raining, and there was no need to take their acting that far; besides, although the gardens of Kurt's father's house were large and well-kept, there was a decided lack of secluded spots.

There was no reason at all to leave the room or even the couch for the next part of the lesson.

"The next step is very easy and very pleasant," Kurt promised, put his hand on the back of Blaine's neck and pulled him close. With a featherlight touch, he brushed his lips over Blaine's, heard him gasp, and smiled. Then he pressed their lips together, using his hand on Blaine's neck to angle his head the way he wanted.

Blaine took a deep, trembling breath and pulled him even closer, opening his mouth in invitation.

Kurt smiled, but did nothing further until he felt the first tentative brush of Blaine's tongue against his lips. He couldn't quite hold back a moan, and decided there would be time enough later for slow, gentle kisses. Now, he would show Blaine what a real kiss could feel like.

Only when the need for air could not be denied any longer did they part, panting, taking their hands away from each other's bodies as if they could not be trusted to be left there.

Blaine looked at Kurt with wide eyes. "My lord..."

Kurt smiled. "I believe, sir, the time has come for you to call me Kurt."

Kurt was lying in bed, torn between needing to think and finally putting his hands on himself to relieve the near-desperate state he had been in ever since kissing Blaine. He had sent Blaine home shortly after they had finally stopped kissing, with an invitation to dinner tomorrow and the prospect of staying the night after an introduction to lord Burt, who would by then have returned from his travels.

A big part of Kurt had wanted Blaine to stay. Even now he had trouble keeping himself from imagining what they might be doing, what he would be teaching Blaine, who would respond so deliciously...But apart from the fact that it would be very inappropriate to stay the night at the house of a man one had not been formally introduced to, Kurt had needed some time to be by himself.

Deeply in thought, he touched his lips, tracing with his finger where Blaine's lips, his tongue had been not too long before. When they had stopped kissing the first time, Blaine had stared at him with wide eyes, looking just as stunned and awed as Kurt could have wished. And though he himself had hopefully looked less so, he had felt just the same.

Kurt had kissed a lot of people, and he had mostly enjoyed it. He had kissed shyly in the beginning and surer later, had shared kisses that were slow and lazy, or started as a slow burn and turned feverish with desire later, others that were passionate and frantic from the beginning.

He was used to the frustration and anticipation he was feeling now, to the way his prick tended to remind him of kisses that had been interrupted or otherwise ended, leaving him physically unsatisfied.

He had enjoyed all these kisses, but his heart and his mind had stayed mainly unaffected.

Until now.