Chapter 21 : - The Solution.

DISCLAMER, i do not own Beauty and the Beast of course, this is just a work of fiction based on the characters and the show.

A/N : Hope you'll like this one … I actually wrote the first draft a while ago, was just waiting for the right moment to fit it in the story. Must be a fantasy of mine or something LOL ahah ! Hopefully that make sense to you, at least to me the scene make more sense than what happened in the show, but that's personal !

Previously in ATW: Vincent has been having nightmares about getting too close to Cat (naked close ! LOL) and uhm … he told her, but she had to go back to work ! But tonight Heather is out (all night) so … Oh and Tess is waiting at the crime scene for Cat ! let's get on to this chapter shall we ? (I"m terrible at that, but it's just so you remember where we are !)

"Tess ?" Cat called as she walked in the apartment where the crime they were investigating had occurred. "Over here" she heard her partner voice coming from downstairs. She walked out of the apartment and followed Tess' voice.

Cat ran and arrived in the laundry room where her colleague was waiting with a guy from the CSU team. "I talked to Evan just after he finished the autopsy, and he said that the victim had probably been moved right before she succumbed to the injuries. So … I came to check a bit places we had not examined. And I found this" she pointed toward a red spot on the lower part of the wall.

"Blood ?" Cat asked. "Yes, and human" the man behind her answered making her turn around to face him. "And we were about to check for more traces." He was holding a bottle of luminol, he had just vaporized the liquid all over the place. "Would you mind turning off the light ?" he asked and Cat complied.

The man turned on his blue light and the detectives noticed traces of blood that had been washed up shining blue on the floor, yet not too much of it. Tess turned the light back on : "I guess we were really looking at this all wrong. This is our primary."

"According to Marks' report the victim got hit behind the head, and given the blood here" he said pointing one for the laundry machines, "I'd say she was pushed and hit her head here, she then fell and lost a bit of blood that our killer probably washed up after disposing the body in her apartment." Both female detectives nodded in approbation of his theory. "So there is probably a bit of blood on the way to the apartment" Tess said. "I guess, I'm going to check and take pictures." the CSU expert immediately answered as he was taking notes on his observations.

Cat was awkwardly silent. She felt a bit guilty, she had been so consumed with her desire to see Vincent that she had been neglecting her job. A light shade of pink appeared on her cheeks but neither Tess nor the CSU guy said a thing about it.

"We need to interview more neighbours then", Cat then told her partner. "Yeah, let's do this" Tess answered before turning to the man, "Could you go to Marks once you're done with all this ?" and he nodded in response still focused on his notes.

As they walked the stairs Cat hesitated to ask about Joe and as if Tess could sense it she said dryly: "Don't".

"I won't" Clearly her partner was not ready for that conversation.

"It was the divorce papers in the envelope" the tall woman said without even looking at her friend.

"That's -"

"I said don't" Tess cut her off. Really not ready, Cat thought. "He invited me for dinner tonight and I said yes and … we don't talk about it anymore."

"Sure" Cat answered. "Work then …"

"Yeah, let's focus on work" Tess knew she was being a bit cold but she was not very sure about how she felt about the whole situation yet and preferred to distract herself with work. After her dinner she would probably be more open with Cat and seek for her input on her relationship with … the boss. And she knew her friend understood her weird behaviour of the moment, the two women had known each others for years.

Cat threw her keys on the kitchen counter sighing. That day was over, well, almost. They still had not closed the case but they had a new suspect in custody.

Boots and coat off, she took a deep breath and rubbed her face a bit. Finally some time to breath. She smiled looking at the empty apartment thinking of Vincent.

She had an idea. The beast was fuelled mostly by fear. Thinking of his nightmares would definitely stress him out and help the beast show up. Her plan was to help him relax, to calm him down. Catherine had to make sure Vincent was not tensed or scared, and he would not see her coming. She smiled maliciously to herself.

Looking at her watch she tried to think of how to plan her night, she'd need an hour to make herself and the apartment look the way she needed. She called to order some food to be delivered and after that sent a text to Vincent telling him when to show up, she then rushed to the shower.

The hot water and the steam in the bathroom were a delicious sensation on her skin and her tired muscles. Catherine enjoyed the moment before walking back to her room to choose her outfit : a nice pair of black jeans with a cute royal blue blouse but most importantly she carefully chose a black bra and the matching panty. It was her sexiest underwear. She knew Vincent was afraid, but she was not and she knew exactly how to get want she wanted tonight. And once she would be able to, he would have no reasons to be afraid anymore.

A quick look at the clock and she dressed up before starting to light candles all over the room : romantic and sexy atmosphere, check. Someone rang the bell, food : almost check she thought. She paid the delivery guy before rushing back to the bathroom to put on some light make up.

He said he would take her to a nice little restaurant out of the city. No one they knew would see them here. Sure now his marriage was really over – thought the paper were probably not signed yet – but he still was her boss and their relationship would have to remain a secret so as not to jeopardize their respective careers.

Tess sighed staring at the orange dress lying on her bed. It had been a gift, she would never buy such a dress, but apparently the color looked good on her. She had even been told she was lucky to be able to wear such a shade, but what did she know about that.

She tried it on and looked at herself in the mirror. The dress fitted her body so perfectly. The corners of her mouth went up as she realised she did look smoking in that dress. She decided to keep her hair down and put on some gaudy earring, she loved how she looked wearing those. She smirked at herself in the mirror and then heard a knock on the door.

The look of awe on Joe's face was all she needed to approve her choice. She shook her head a bit to push her hair back so he'd have a better look. He still had not manage to say a word.

"Damn you look … wow" he exhale making her smirk even more.

She went to grab her coat and purse almost parading in her apartment while Joe was staring at her curves from the doorstep. When she came back toward him ready to go he extended his arm his eyes still staring at her body.

When Catherine got back in her room he was waiting for her sitting on the window still. She could not help but think how dashing he looked with his coat opened and his hair falling a bit on his forehead. Vincent stood and without a word both just walked toward each-other and sealed a kiss. The perfect guy : check, Catherine thought to herself.

"You look beautiful" he said with a delicious smile that almost made her melt, "you too" she answered before kissing him again lightly.

"What's with the candles ?" he asked curious.

"You'll see ! Chinese ?"

"Uhm, sure." he answered a bit puzzled. She was being mysterious.

She lead him to the kitchen and they ate together. They did not talk much, all they wanted was to enjoy each-other's company. Between bites they exchanged meaningful glances and smiles. Catherine chuckled a few times at Vincent's clumsiness with the chop sticks and he frowned faking to be offended. That was a nice beginning for an epic evening. He was truly relaxed and happy, enjoying himself around her. He had no idea what she had in mind for them, he was probably a bit naïve about her intention. After they conversation earlier he thought she had planned a cosy night and that they'd probably try to talk things out.

It did not really take them long to finish their dinner and as soon as they were done she lead him back to the bed room almost in a hurry.

He was not really ready for that, so he tried to speak out : "Shouldn't we … ". But she silenced him caressing his lips with her forefinger. "Shhhh" she then whispered in his ear, "Let me".

Catherine pushed him to sit on the bed and turned off the lights so the candles would have their effect. The atmosphere was both sexy and relaxing and Vincent was growing a bit scared. He was conflicted because he wanted this so much and if he had not been afraid of that beast already awaking in him he would already be undressing her, kissing her and caressing every inch of her delicate skin. Damn, by this time they would probably be already both naked.

"I know that you're scared, that you do not trust yourself but I just want you to relax and for that I have an idea". She waited for his reaction, he was speechless. He tried to control his breathing and relax but he kept thinking of the nightmares. This was not a good idea, they shouldn't do that … he could hurt her. His mind was racing and since he was not answering Catherine continued.

"You said you trusted me … you still do, right ?" he nodded quite shyly.

She smiled at him, feeling proud of herself. "Take off you shirt and just lay on your stomach on the bed I'll be right back." Confused he just complied. She was in control of the situation and she was enjoying it.

From the bathroom she added, "Oh and keep your eyes shut".

She then walked back in only wearing a short silk robe above her underwear and she sat one leg on each side of his body and a bottle of massage oil in her hands. She felt he was about to say something but she did not want to hear it and cut him short before a word could escaped his mouth : "Don't say anything, just relax … breath … and keep your eyes closed".

She was no expert so she just followed her instincts. After pouring some oil on one hand she put the bottle on the floor next to the bed and stroked her hands together before starting her massage. She insisted a lot on his shoulders where his muscles were particularly tensed, drawing small circles with her thumbs. She then knead his sides delicately from the hips moving slowly up to his rib cage.

After a few minutes she could feel that his muscles were relaxing, but just a little.

"Do you like it ?" she asked a bit unsure of her skills.

"Yeah …" he manage to exhale. Vincent was still struggling afraid that the arousal would bring the beast to the surface.

"I can feel you're tensed … " she said to explain why she was not sure. "Just relax, everything is ok" she whispered.

The sound of Catherine's voice was almost magic combined with her delicate fingertips now drawing patterns on his back; he was in heaven. She kept working on his shoulders a bit and then massaged his arms deposing kisses on the back of his neck and whispering her love to him.

When she could feel his muscles were fully relaxed, she got off his back. "You can open your eyes now" she said seductively.

He rolled off a bit, resting on his left elbow to look at her and was stunned at the view. Her hair fell on her right shoulder as she titled her head and she was smiling at him. The robe she was wearing was slightly opened and revealed a bit her beautiful dark bra. The way the light of the candles danced on her skin was the cherry on top; his jaw dropped and he let escape a "wow".

Catherine blushed and leaned to kiss him, he wrapped his arm around her to pull her closer and deepened the kiss until a flash of yellow in his eyes made him push her away but she did not let him. "I love you" she whispered against his lips as she kept kissing him. Vincent's body relaxed at the sound of her voice and he regained control for a little while.

She pulled a bit away and slid her robe off, throwing it aside. Catherine looked beautiful in her delicate lingerie, he took in the sight wondering for a moment if she was real. His fingertips travelled on the sides of her body as if he wanted to feel her curves to make a sculpture of her.

As his excitement grew, veins started to show on his arms and neck; she noticed and caressed him where they appeared whispering to his ear : "Just breath, everything is fine". Eventually they disappeared but his breathing was getting shallow. That did not stop her, Catherine was kissing his scarred-cheek, his neck, his shoulder …

"Maybe we should stop" he whispered while his hands were still all over her body. It was like they were making decision for themselves, like they had a mind of their own. He could not take them off her, they kept caressing her skin, so soft, so irresistible. He wanted to kiss every each of her body, taste it, feel it against his.

"Do you want to ?" she asked pulling a bit away while still resting her hands on his strong shoulders. "We should" he answered lowly while he was staring at her beauty with so much lust and desire. But she looked him straight in the eyes and repeated "Do you want to ?"

"No" he exhaled barely able to hold the word back as she leaned again to kiss him.

She felt his hands on her back, his lips on her jaw, her neck, her shoulder and she knew she had won. He was letting himself go and enjoying the moment. His tongue teased her neck and she closed her eyes to savour the feeling. She tasted like raspberries, like chocolate, like … paradise.

She pushed him on his back and positioned herself above him looking at his eyes. She loved the way he looked at her in that moment. So much desire and lust and still that love that would never go away.

Again his eyes flashed a golden glow but she loved it. It gave her chills. He desired her so much he could barely keep the beast under control, that was exiting. And though it was hard for him to contain that monster inside she knew she could. More and more she felt in control of the situation : when the golden light shined through his eyes she simply whispered against his lips : "You are perfect, I love you". And the light disappeared. She loved to witness how much power she had over him, how she could set him and fire and tam the beast in just a few gestures, with just a few words.

Her hands started to travel on his body, she was tracing lines along his abs and his torso. Vincent drowned in her loving eyes and savoured her touch on his chest, his back, his hips. The beast was on the edge he could feel it but he kept hearing her voice, so soft, so full of love : "Shhhh, breath, just stay here with me and relax" and his body was responding to her plea, each time.

The more it was going the more she dared to be bold in her touch and her kisses and at some point it felt like both were forgetting about the beast and simply enjoyed being in each-other's arm.

All this time Catherine had been the solution. She was Vincent's drug but the was also the cure. Just like wine she was his poison yet his salvation; to him she was everything.

A/N : Ok I here is the thing, the fic is rated T, and I'd be really terrible at writing sex scenes anyway so I thought it was maybe better to just describe it like that and let you imagine the rest !

For me it was important to take my time with that part of the story, to explore all the doubts and fear of Vincent and have Catherine be the one leading the thing. I like the idea that her voice and her delicate touch can help him tam the beast. I hope you liked that part of the story too.

I'm dying to know what you think ! Leave me a little note !