The SWAT Kats are owned by Hanna Barbera and the Tremblay Brothers. I own the OCs.
Sorry for the delay, I wanted this chapter to shine as brightly as it could. My Co-Author MisaRae made sure that it did and kicked my tail about the parts that had dents in it. Then yet again when I didn't fix it! Thank you my dear friend!
The next morning, Felina woke up just in the nick of time to get the two cadets over to the academy in time for morning exercises. She turned over in bed and noticed the time. "Oh crap! I can't believe I overslept!" she said as she darted out of bed and ran into the bathroom to take a very quick shower before she had to head out.
Jake decided to take mercy on her and make breakfast so she would have plenty of energy to get through her day. He slipped out of bed, pulled on a pair of sweatpants, and went into the kitchen.
Felina took one of the quickest showers of her life. Then, just as she was about to leave the bathroom to get dressed, her stomach turned on her, forcing her to run to the toilet right before she got sick. As she heaved what was left of her dinner into the toilet, she silently cursed as she realized what she must do. "I hate feeling like this! I know I said I would do this yesterday, but now I really do have to talk to my mother. She was never sick when she was pregnant with my brothers," Felina said before she returned to the bedroom and changed into her fatigues.
She left the bedroom, banged her left fist on Katerina and Tina's door, then yelled, "You two have less than five minutes to get changed and out here, or you both are going to be running to the academy!" Felina lowered her fist back to her side and walked over to her kitchen to find Jake at the stove making her breakfast. "You're so sweet to be making me breakfast," Felina said.
"Thank you, dear," Jake said as he tended the eggs he was frying.
She went over to the kitchen phone, lifted the receiver, then said, "You are going to have to make this up to me." She started dialing her parent's phone number.
Jake turned around and asked, "Exactly what do I have to make up for?"
"Hello?" a strong tom's voice answered.
"Father, it's your daughter. I need to talk to Mother," Felina said.
"One minute, Felina," her father replied.
While she was waiting for her mother to pick up, she shot Jake a dirty look and mouthed, 'This is what you have to make up for.'
Jake mouthed back, 'Oh,' before he focused back on his pan.
"Hello Felina," her mother said. "To what do I owe the pleasure of this call?" she then asked, her voice dripping with sarcasm.
Felina cringed before she replied, "Mother, what did you do to help with your morning sickness?"
"What happened, Felina? Did one of your so-called dates forget to use something and knock you up?" her mother asked.
"No, Mother! I'm pregnant with my fiancé's kitten, and he asked me to marry him before I got pregnant!" Felina yelled.
"Wait, you're getting married? You? Miss I have to do everything on my own in order to prove I can be just as good as a tom Felina, is getting married? So, who is the lucky gentleman who gets to be your husband?" her mother asked.
"If you must know, Mother, I'm marrying one of the most loveable, honest, smart, and wealthy toms out there. I'm getting married to Jake Clawson," she said before she cupped the receiver, turned to Jake, and said, "Don't let that go to your head, dear."
"How did you manage to get him to ask for your paw in marriage? You must have been real good in the sack that night, Feli.." her mother started to say, but Felina couldn't take any more.
She ripped the phone off of the wall and threw it as hard as she could towards the other end of the room. She then slumped down onto her knees and started crying. "Why can't my mother believe a tom could possibly love me?" She lifted her head to look at Jake, who was already walking towards her, then asked, "Am I that bad, Jake? Are you really in love with me?"
Just as soon as Felina ripped the phone from the wall, Jake threw the spatula he was holding into the kitchen sink, ran to her as fast as his feet could go, and dropped to the floor, landing on his knees before pulling her into a tight embrace. He said as he slowly rocked her, "Of course I love you, Felina. I have loved you for years, and now that we are going to get married, I love you even more."
"I love you, too, Jake," Felina replied before she lowered her head to his shoulder and closed her eyes. She concentrated on calming herself down, slowing her breath to match that of her husband-to-be. It galled her how inadequate and insignificant her mother always made her feel, tearing her down to the very foundation. But this time, she did not have to face her mother's cruel barbs alone. She didn't have to sob into a lonely pillow where no one else could see her. Jake knew her and loved her, even in her moments of weakness. Words started drifting from her mouth, all the questions she had pushed away to the back of her mind coming forward in the comfort of Jake's embrace. "Why does my mother always feel the need to cut me down? Doesn't she realize how much that hurts me? Why can't she be happy with me, or even for me, just once in her life? Why doesn't she want her only daughter to love, and be loved by, the most amazing tom in the world?" She lifted her head to look into Jake's eyes, then said, "I'm talking about you, obviously."
Jake didn't know how to respond to the she-cat he loved more than life itself, so he answered her questions the only way he knew how; he kissed her, pouring every ounce of love he felt for her into his kiss.
Felina fell under Jake's spell and kissed him back, even slipped her tongue into his mouth, just to let him know that she was so in love with him, she couldn't live without him in her life anymore. Eventually, she withdrew from their kiss, rested her forehead against his, then said, "Let's get married."
"We are getting married, Felina, but I thought you wanted a joint wedding with Callie and Chance?" he responded.
She kissed his cheek and said, "I did. But now, I want to get married as soon as possible to the tom that I'm so madly in love with. The tom who knows how to make me feel better when I am feeling at lousy and the tom who is the father of our kitten."
Jake stroked the one spot on her right cheek that always made her purr like a kitten as he said, "Felina, I want to marry you, too. But we can't just go off somewhere and elope. What would our friends say if we did that? Don't you want your uncle and your best friend in the whole world to see you get married? I think you do, and I want my best friend to see me marry the she-cat that makes my wildest dreams come true."
Felina purred as Jake stroked her cheek. She rested her head on his shoulder again and rubbed her left paw across his chest. "You're right, Jake. I want my friends and family to watch me get married, but I also don't want to be without you as my husband anymore, either."
"Then let's get married, Felina," Jake said.
Felina lifted her head, looked into his eyes, and asked, "What?"
Jake looked into her eyes and watched them sparkle for a second, then said, "If that is what my love wants, then that is what she will get. Let's get married, Felina, right after Ulysses marries Callista. We don't want to rain on their special day, right?"
"Of course not. My uncle and future aunt deserve to have their day in the sun. I honestly can't wait to have Callista as my aunt. She and my uncle were made for each other, and they are going to be so happy together," Felina said before she kissed Jake one last time for the morning, then left to go and check on the two recruits in the other room.
Jake was watching her walk away, as happy as a kitten on her birthday, when he heard a rustling from the couch. He turned his head and saw two heads peeking over the backrest, looking directly at him. "How long have you two been there?"
"We fell asleep on the couch after we ate your left over dinner, Jake. Which was delicious, by the way, so we saw and heard the whole thing," Tina said.
Jake started to walk over to the two lovers when Katerina held up her right paw and said, "Don't come any closer, Jake. We like you, but you don't want to see us right now."
"Why wouldn't I want to see two of my best friends?" Jake asked after he stopped.
Tina and Katerina looked at each other before their eyes drifted over each other's bodies without a stich of clothing and Tina replied, "If you came over, you would be seeing much more of us than I think Felina would be comfortable with. Please turn around so we can return to our room and get dressed."
Jake did as they requested and turned around to face the kitchen while Tina and Katerina got off of the couch and started to walk back towards their bedroom.
"What are you two doing in my living room naked!?" Felina asked when she saw them walking towards her. She shook her head, then said, "Never mind, I really don't want to know. Go and get dressed. We have to be at the academy in fifteen minutes, or we all will be running laps around the grounds, and by we, I mean you two will be running while I follow behind you in a golf cart, understand?"
Tina and Felina couldn't run fast enough to change into their fatigues, and as soon as Felina heard the door slam, she started to laugh at their predicament because was also caught in the same situation with one of her ex-tomfriends by her mother.
"What's so funny, dear?" Jake asked.
"Just reliving an old memory, dear," Felina replied. "Come on, let's eat and pack up something for the two lovers in the other room."
Tim woke up to the sound of the shower running. He opened his eyes and felt the soft sheets he had grown accustomed to in the past two days since he and Candice started sleeping together in the same room beneath him. The only thing that was missing was Candice's body curled up next to him. He loved waking up next to her and listening to her light breathing as she slept. It was music to his ears, and the sounds she made lulled him into some of the most restful nights' slumbers he had ever known.
The water stopped flowing, and after a few minutes, Candice left the bathroom wearing a towel around her head and another covering her torso. She swiftly went over to her walk-in closet and stepped inside. "Pants or a skirt?" she asked.
"Excuse me?" Tim replied.
"I can't decide if I want to wear a pair of pants or a skirt with this new blouse I bought," she said.
"What is your schedule today, Candice?" Tim asked.
"I really don't know, Tim. Please hand me my phone and I'll check," Candice replied.
Tim lifted the covers from his body, went and found her phone, which was sitting on her nightstand charging, and picked it up in his right paw. He brought it over and handed it to her.
Candice noticed the way Tim was clothed, or more precisely, his lack of clothing, and said, "If you plan on coming to my office wearing that, I'm completely fine with it. But others might not feel the same way. Although I love the way those briefs show off your tail."
Tim kissed her before walking towards the bathroom so he could shower and get ready for the day.
Candice watched his hindquarters move in the tight underwear she had bought for him. She licked her lips, watching his muscles flex as he walked, and was tempted to join him in the shower. But as soon as he was out of sight, she pulled on her underwear and a pair of hose. She decided to go with the skirt since it was a supposed to be a warm day, and she loved the way her legs looked when she wore heels. And so did Tim. She swore he stared at her for hours, just watching her move around the office. Candice turned to her left and removed a white silk blouse from its hangar. She slipped it onto her upper body and buttoned it up. She purposely left the top three buttons undone to show off her breastbone and just enough of her chest. Finally, she turned to her right and found a maroon suede skirt and matching four-inch-heel shoes for her feet. Candice stepped into the skirt and pulled it up her legs before securing it to her hips by pulling up the hidden zipper on the right side. She decided to leave the shoes off until they were ready to leave for her office. Candice left her closet, walked over to her dressing table, sat down, and removed the towel from her hair. It fell down to her shoulders, then she ran a brush though it to straighten it out and give it the bounce she desired. Satisfied with her appearance, she left the bedroom to get something to eat from the kitchen.
Tim finished showering and turned off the water. He toweled his fur dry before he wrapped the towel around his waist and went into the bedroom to get dressed in his Enforcer's uniform. As he dressed, his phone buzzed, signaling he had a message. He went over to his phone and read the message. 'Officer Jones. You are to return to your normal patrol tomorrow morning. Your charge no longer requires 24/7 protection.' Tim's heart fell into his gut as he read the message one more time. He went and sat on the edge of the bed as he held his head in his paws. "How am I going to tell her I'm returning to normal patrol after today? I don't want to be apart from her anymore." He slammed his right fist into the mattress, then said, "Dammit! I had to fall in love with her despite what Ulysses told me?" He turned his head towards the nightstand and saw a picture of Candice standing in between Sasha and Leona. All three of them looked very happy with large smiles on their faces. He ran the pad of his left index finger over Candice's face and said, "And I don't regret falling for her for a single minute." Tim dressed and went over to the mirror, straightened his tie, and went to join Candice in the kitchen.
"Candice, we need to.. Whoa," he started to say, but stopped as soon as he noticed Candice sitting at the kitchen table with her long legs resting on the table, crossed right over left.
Candice lowered her mug from her mouth after she took a sip of her coffee then asked, "What's the matter, Tim? Cat got your tongue?"
Tim went over to her, kissed her, then went to get a cup of coffee for himself before he sat down next to her. "I'm returning to normal duty tomorrow, Candice."
Candice choked on her coffee, then said, "They can't do that! Those guys are still out there, and they might have seen me." She lowered her legs to the floor, wrapped her arms around herself, then said, "I'm scared, Tim. I don't like being scared."
That statement broke Tim's resolve. He stood up, pulled his phone out of the left pocket of his pants, and called the one tom that could help him.
Ulysses sat at the table with Callista sitting opposite him. He could not believe that in six days he was going to be married to the she-cat he should have married years ago. He reached across the table, took her paw in his, and started to massage her fingers with his when his phone started to ring. "I can't wait until Felina takes this job so I can spend all of my time loving you." He brought the phone to his ear and said, "This is Commander Feral."
"Commander, this is Officer Jones. I received a message from headquarters telling me that I am returning to normal duty tomorrow morning. Please tell me this is some sort of a sick joke?" Tim asked.
"What are you talking about, Jones? You were assigned your current detail by me, personally. No one has the authority to change that," Ulysses responded.
Tim pulled the phone away from his ear, copied the message he had received from headquarters, and sent it to the Commander. He then put the phone back to his ear and asked, "I sent you a copy of the message, Commander. If you didn't authorize the change in my assignment, then what do you make of it?"
Ulysses' phone vibrated in his paw, letting him know he had received the message from Officer Jones. Ulysses responded, "Let me read it, and I will call you back in a few minutes, Officer. And do not let her out of your sight for any reason! Not even for a minute. Something stinks about this, and I am going to get to the bottom of it." He disconnected the call as soon as he finished speaking.
Tim didn't even have a chance to answer the Commander before Ulysses hung up on him. He put his phone away and went to Candice's side. He crouched down, stroked her right cheek with the back of his right paw, then said, "You are stuck with me, Candice. The Commander didn't change my assignment, and when I told him I had been reassigned, he sounded pissed. I would hate to be on his wrong side. He is one tough tom."
Candice felt a little relieved when Tim told her he was staying, but she was still not comfortable. She turned her body to face him and wrapped her arms around his neck. "I'm not the type of she-cat to go crawling to a tom when things get tough, but with those guys running around free, I admit, I am frightened. I don't want to end up like those innocent teenagers did. They didn't deserve to die because they wanted to show their affection for each other. But they are dead; those guys shot them point blank without any sign of remorse. I don't want to die, Tim. I want to live out my life, get married, and have a family just like my parents and their parents did. Please keep me safe from those toms," she pleaded.
Tim pulled her to him, rested his head on her left shoulder, and said, "I promise, Candice. I will keep you safe, with my life, if necessary." He lifted his head off of her shoulder and then slowly lifted her head so he could look into her eyes, then said, "I love you, Candice Thibideau. You mean the world to me."
"I love you, too, Timothy Jones. With all of my heart and soul," Candice replied before she kissed him.
Tim kissed her back for a minute, then withdrew his lips from hers. He stood up and said, "I want to take my girlfriend out to one of the local spots my Enforcer colleagues go for breakfast, so I can show her off and make them jealous that I have a gorgeous she-cat, who I love to death, on my arm."
Candice got up from her seat, straightened out her skirt, and sauntered to the door of her apartment, knowing Tim would be watching her hips sway as she walked. She opened the door, slightly bent her left knee, and asked, "Are you going to stare at me all day, or are you going to join me for that breakfast you mentioned?"
Tim decided to lighten the mood and have a little fun. He smirked, then answered, "I think I'll just stare at you for a while and let the image of you in that skirt burn into my memory."
Candice let go of the door and walked over to him as sexily as she could. She crossed her feet with every step she took on purpose, in order to add extra sway to her hips. To accentuate her movements even further, she made sure the tip of her tail whipped through the air with each seductive step.
Tim's eyes almost fell out of their sockets as he watched Candice slink her way over to him. He felt like a small, cornered animal waiting to be devoured by a predator. He gulped when she got very close to him, close enough to feel her hot breath on him.
As soon as Candice was close enough to Tim, she reached out with her left arm and draped it over Tim's right shoulder. She stood on her toes and nibbled on his left ear before she whispered, "I forgot my shoes." Candice let go of Tim and bent over to get her shoes. She put them on and walked back to the door.
Tim was completely mesmerized by her seduction, and could not focus on anything else.
Candice looked over her left shoulder and noticed Tim hadn't moved an inch since she went to get her shoes. She turned to her right and noticed a tennis ball sitting on the table by the coatrack. She grabbed the ball in her right paw and threw it at Tim. The ball hit him in the chest just hard enough to snap him back to reality. "Come on, lover. I'm hungry, and unless you want to be breakfast, I suggest you get your tail in gear."
Tim smiled, then ran over to her, picked her up bridal style, and carried her out of the apartment as he said, "This is one of the reasons I love you so much, Candice. One minute you can be as playful as a kitten, and the next, you are a very seductive lioness who is ready to pounce."
Candice wrapped her arms around his neck and asked, "Which me do you love more? The playful kitten or the sexy, seductive lioness?"
Tim was already walking down the hall, carrying her in his arms, when he replied, "I love them both." He pushed the elevator call button with his right knee so he didn't have to let go of her and so he could also kiss her once again.
They made it to the delicatessen Tim had mentioned within minutes, and as Candice got out of Tim's car, she noticed several patrol cars lining the streets around the delicatessen, as well as several officers standing outside drinking their morning coffee.
Tim got out of the car and closed the door before he asked, "Are you ready to meet the cats I work with?"
Candice looked around and knew they had parked in a spot that could be very easily seen by everyone around the deli. She walked around to the front of the car, sat down on the hood, and leaned back, resting her body on her arms and lifting her left leg to rest on the bumper of the car. "Sure, Tim, but I think you are going to have to stop your friends from gawking at my legs first."
Tim turned towards her, then heard the catcalls and wolf whistles from across the street from the male Enforcers standing outside the deli. "You certainly know how to make a first impression, Candice," he said as he removed her from the hood of his car and linked his arm with hers.
"What's the matter, Tim? Don't tell me I embarrassed you in front of your friends?" Candice asked.
"Hardly, dear," Tim replied. "I don't mind you showing off. Heck, it wouldn't be you if I didn't expect some shocking behavior every once and a while. However, I don't appreciate my fellow co-workers staring and making lewd noises at you, though I understand why. Candice, you are the most amazing she-cat out there on two very sexy long legs. Well, at least to me you are." He stopped on the sidewalk in front of his friends and kissed her while his left paw gave her backside a playful slap. Tim withdrew from the kiss, then said, "And you're mine."
That kiss made the all of the toms' jaws drop open and the she-cats blush. Then one of the male officers asked, "Hey, Tim, are you seriously dating that gorgeous she-cat, or can I have a shot at her?"
"No, Phil, I'm not dating her anymore," Tim replied.
Candice felt her heart stop when Tim finished speaking, especially after he had just kissed her in front of his friends.
"I have asked her to be my wife one day, and she said yes! I'm sort of engaged to this wonderful female!" Tim exclaimed.
Everyone outside of the deli applauded and congratulated them as they walked past and into the deli. Tim spotted Mark and Lisa sitting at a table, holding each other's paws tightly with two cups of steaming coffee on the table in front of them. "I want to introduce you to my cousin and her fiancé," Tim said as he led Candice over to the table.
"Was that you two causing the commotion outside?" Mark asked.
"Sort of. Lisa, Mark, this is Candice. My girlfriend, um.. sort of fiancée," Tim said.
"Fiancée?" Lisa asked. "Isn't she the one you are supposed to be watching and keeping safe?"
"Yes, she is Lisa," Tim replied as he pulled Candice into a sideways hug. "Something wonderful happened: we fell in love, and after I met her parents and grandmother, I asked her to marry me one day. Now I can't imagine my life without her."
Lisa got out of her seat and hugged her cousin tightly before she said, "It's about time you found someone who can put up with you, Tim."
"Thanks, cuz. I think," Tim said, then turned to Candice and asked, "While I play catch up with my cousin, care to head to the counter and order breakfast for us?"
"Alright, can I get you two anything while I am up?" Candice asked.
"I'm alright. Thank you, though," Mark replied.
"Hmm, I could use a danish. Apple preferred," Lisa said.
"You never ate pastries before, Lisa," Tim said.
"I was never pregnant before, Tim," Lisa said.
Tim and Candice's eyes went wide, then Tim asked, "You're pregnant? How? When?"
"We'll tell you, Tim. Relax and breathe," Lisa said.
While Mark and Lisa told Tim about the past few weeks, minus a few details about a certain four-letter vigilante group they belonged to, Candice went over to the counter to place an order for their meals, as well as an apple danish for Lisa.
A well-dressed tom bumped into her and said, "I apologize, miss."
Candice turned to him and recognized him as one of the toms who had shot the teenagers that night. She froze for a second as fear rose in her body, then said with a very shaky breath, "No harm done."
The tom tipped his hat to her and left the deli carrying a white bag in his right paw.
As soon as the tom was gone, Candice ran back over to Tim, who was laughing right along with Mark and Lisa, and crashed into him. She held him tightly and said, "I just ran into one of the toms that were at Lovers' Point."
They stopped laughing and Tim turned in her arms, laid his paws on her shoulders, then asked, "Are you sure? You were very shaken by what you witnessed that night."
"Positive, I will never forget that scar just below his right eye," she replied as she trembled in his arms.
Tim pulled her into a protective embrace, stroked her hair, and said, "I've got you, and he is gone." He turned his head to Mark and Lisa, then asked, "I'm going to take her to her office. Can you two tail him and see where he is going?"
"Sure, but we are in a patrol car. We are going to be spotted instantly if we use that," Mark said as he stood up.
Tim fished his car keys out of his pocket, handed them to Mark, and said, "Mine is unmarked, and looks like crap, so it will blend in. Take mine and I will use yours."
"Good plan," Lisa said as she got up from her seat and straightened out her uniform before she said, "Congratulations, you two. You have no idea how happy I am that my cousin has finally found a she-cat that loves him and wants to marry his scrawny behind."
"Hey, my behind is not scrawny, Lisa!" Tim yelled.
Mark and Lisa were almost out the door when Lisa heard Tim's comment. She turned to him and said, "Compared to my husband's, yes, it is." She grabbed Mark's butt as he went by her, then said, "This is what a butt is supposed to look and feel like. Candice, you had better get my cousin on a very strict exercise regime if you want him to get a body like Mark's." Then she was out the door, running to catch up to Mark.
Candice thought she was bold when it came to showing how she felt about Tim, but Lisa could be even bolder than she was. Candice then asked, "She called Mark her husband just now. Didn't you say they were engaged, not married?"
"I did, so I have no idea what Lisa is talking about," Tim replied. "We'll ask her later. Right now, I'm taking you to your office, and you are not leaving my sight until we get back home later today."
Lisa and Mark were following a brown Cadillac sedan through the streets of the city when Mark said, "I can't believe you called me your husband in front of your cousin. Adonis and Pirouette are married, not Mark and Lisa, remember? And what was with you grabbing my butt back at the deli?"
Lisa turned a corner, then replied, "I didn't mean for our secret marriage to slip out. I'll have to be more careful. Anyway, in a few short weeks, we will be married, so it really doesn't matter."
"And you grabbing my backside?" Mark asked in a serious tone.
"Face it, dear; your tail is one of the best in the city, if not the state. I just could not help myself," Lisa responded.
The Cadillac pulled up to a large building with a guard station and a set of gates blocking the entrance. The driver handed the guard his ID and the guard let him enter the building.
"What is this place, Mark?" Lisa asked. "Between all of the cameras, the guard station, and the razor wire along the top of the walls, it looks more like a maximum security prison than a regular building."
"I have no idea, Lisa," Mark replied as he looked at the walls surrounding the building and noticed the crest engraved into the wall as they drove past. "Crap! That insignia on the wall is the same one that was tattooed on the nurse, as well as the tom who shot you. I think we need to have a little chat with Chance and Jake about getting an overhead view of what is beyond these walls. There is more going on here than what we see." They drove off down the street to return to headquarters to start planning a little recon mission with the help of SWAT.
End of Chapter