Jake had his head buried under the hood of what used to be a Enforcer's Patrol car, while Tina was performing an oil change on a similar car.
"How come you get the more complicated repairs, while I get to do the mundane stuff like oil changes and tire rotations Jake?" Tina asked as she walked out from under the car she was working on.
Jake removed the carburetor from the intake of the car. He lifted his upper body from under the hood and as he walked over to his work bench to rebuild the faulty part, he answered, "You want to play with old gas and go home smelling like it, go right ahead. I'll gladly switch jobs with you, anytime you are ready." He set the carburetor down and watched the fuel it contained in the floats, leak all over the bench, emitting an awful chemical smell.
Tina smelled the fumes, and quickly covered her mouth and nose with a red shop rag, then went to open the garage doors, in order to let the place air out. She turned around and noticed Jake overcome by the fumes. "Jake!" She yelled and ran over to him.
As soon as she was by his side, she picked him up and ran out of the garage. She laid him down on the macadam right outside of the garage and checked his breathing. She quickly discovered, he wasn't breathing on his own and had to do something about it, or she was going to lose one of her best friends. Without thinking twice, she lowered her mouth to his and started breathing for him.
A few of the Groundskeepers noticed a very shapely she-cat wearing a Mechanic's clothes on the ground, kissing from what they could tell, another mechanic. "I wonder what he did to her to cause her to kiss him like that?" One of them asked the other.
Tina heard them with her impressive hearing, lifter her head long enough to say, "You jerks! He fainted from breathing in old gas fumes! Get some help over here!" And proceeded to cover Jake's mouth with her own again.
The Groundskeepers scattered to the Medical Building to get the help Tina asked for.
Tina pushed air into Jake's lungs while leaving her right paw on his rib cage, monitoring the filling of air. She withdrew her mouth, turned her head to the right, in order to see if Jake was breathing on his own, and when she didn't feel any air from him, she said, "Start breathing, damn it! I'm not going to be the one to tell Felina you died from over exposure!" She then resumed her task.
Jake did waken and felt a pair of silky lips against his. He instantly thought it was Felina that was kissing him and instinctively kissed her back, not knowing it was actually Tina she was kissing.
Tina felt Jake kissing her and pulled back. She looked down and saw his chest rising and falling on its own. Then saw his eyes flutter open. "Jake, if Felina was here and witnessed you kissing me, she would kill you."
"Tina, I'm sorry. I thought you were her," Jake apologized, then continued, "I do have to admit, Katerina is one very lucky she-cat, your lips felt divine."
Tina helped him up, then said, "You weren't that bad of a kisser either Jake," She then kissed his left cheek and said, "Let's keep this between us, ok?"
Mark ran over to them, stopped, took in a few breaths, then asked, "Are you two ok? You both look a little.. flushed?"
Tina didn't realize she was blushing just from Jake's simple kiss. She tuned her head to face Jake, and noticed he was blushing as well. However, being her father's daughter, she couldn't help herself to have a little fun at her friend's expense. She answered, "We're both fine, Mark. Jake asked me to help him out with the finer points of getting a she-cat.. in the mood, since I am very well versed in female anatomy. I guess I gave him a little, too much advise."
"Tina! That is not what happened at all!" Jake rebutted. "I was working on a carburetor which had very old gas in the floats. Apparently, I was overcome by the fumes, and I guess Tina carried me out of the garage. I only woke up a few minutes ago."
"I hope that is how it occurred, Jake," Mark said as he adjusted his sunglasses back over his eyes. "I would hate to be the one to explain to Felina how Katerina butterflied you with one of her sharp knives after she found out you kissed Tina." And went back to his post.
As soon as he was gone, Jake turned back to Tina, then said, "I can't believe you told Mark that! Do you have any idea what your fiancée is going to do to me!?I might as well resign myself that I will never see my son! Thanks a lot, Tina!"
Tina's tail drooped to the floor when she realized she might have gone too far this time. She looked at her feet, shuffling her right foot on the ground, as she said, "Jake, I'm sorry for saying those things to Mark." She lifted her head to face him, then said, "I simply wanted to tease you. I guess I'm more like my father, than I thought." Tina walked over to him, hugged him tightly, then said, "You and I are kindred spirits Jake and if I wasn't hopelessly in love with Katerina and you weren't in love with Felina, I would have fallen for you in a heartbeat."
Jake hugged her back, then said, "Tina, I could have fallen for you as well. However, as you mentioned, we are deeply in love with our significant others. Plus, you're gay, so I wouldn't be a match for you anyway."
Tina kissed his left cheek, then said, "You're right Jake. Now, if you were a she-cat.. Rowl, you and I would be a perfect pair." She latched her right arm around his left, pulled him back to the garage, as she said, "Let's get back to work, and this time, crack those carbs open by the doors."
Across town, Roland was leaning against one of the walls of Pirouette's Dance Studio, simply watching Artemis teach her students. After several dates, and even more kisses, he'd fallen over the deep end in love with her. She was constantly in his thoughts, mostly how good it felt to have her in his arms."
Artemis lifted her left leg onto the barre, stretching out her thigh muscle, when she noticed, Roland looking at her and decided to have a little fun with her tomfriend. She bent at the waist, leaning forward enough to grab her left foot with both of her paws, letting her bright red leotard ride up her tail section, effectively, showing off her shapely lower half.
Roland was watching her like a hawk, so when she did that little maneuver, his eyes went wide and almost stopped breathing. 'She's so beautiful, how did I manage to get her to date me, I'll never know.' He said to himself.
Artemis chuckled when she saw Roland falter, then lowered he leg to the floor. She turned her head to the right to glance at the clock, then said to her class, "That's enough for today. Next week, we start rehearsing for the recital occurring next month. Don't forget to practice. Oh, I need the Permission Slips I sent home last week returned by next class, with your parent's signature."
A few minutes later, Artemis hugged every one of her students as they left the studio, before closing the door. She turned around when she heard Roland say as he left his spot, walking towards her, "And I thought Felicia captivated her students attention." She loved the way his tight shirt showed off his muscular upper body and the way his blue jeans didn't hide his toned legs. 'Felicia really keeps her students in top form, I'll have to thank her later.' She thought as her tail swished back and forth ever so slowly.
Once Roland was close enough to her, he wrapped his arms around Artemis' lower back and pulled her to him, holding her tight.
"You seem to have me in a very interesting position, Roland. Now that you have me, what are you planning on doing?" She seductively asked, running the fingers of her left paw though his hair.
As Roland lowered his head, aligning his mouth with hers, he replied as his eyes closed, "I was planning on doing this." Then kissed her.
Artemis placed both of her paws on his shoulders, then around his neck as she kissed him back.
He let his left paw drift up her back to the right shoulder strap of the leotard, started to slide it off, then he heard, "Don't stop Roland, this is getting good."
Roland separated his mouth from hers and turned to see James standing in the doorway on a pair of metal crutches. Roland smiled, let go of Artemis, and ran over to his friend. He stopped a few inches in front of James, then said, "Its so good to see you up and moving again, James."
"It feels good to be out of the hospital, Roland," James responded. "Dr. Feldman was able to remove the bullet from my spine without any complications. According to him, I should be off of these things in a few weeks. By the way, did you know Sensei works in the hospital as a nurse? She almost cried when she came into my room to check in on me, then told me she was going to personally take charge of my physical therapy. I hope she's a little more gentle then when she is giving us a lesson?" he looked past Roland to Artemis, then asked, "Is this the she-cat we rescued?"
Roland turned his had all the way to the left, so he could look at his girlfriend, then turned back to James, and answered, "Yes, that's her. Her name is Artemis, and my girlfriend."
"Girlfriend!? I thought you swore off dating after what Tiffany did to you?" James asked.
Roland went over to Artemis, gently out his right arm around her waist, then said, "I did, then I met this wonderful she-cat, whom I'm quite in deep like with."
Artemis faced Roland, then asked, "Deep Like with? Roland, last night, you told me you never dated anyone who made you feel as good as when you are with me. I think your verbiage is a little off."
"You're right, Artemis. I'm not in deep like with you," Roland said, right before he spun her in his arms, then said, "I'm in love with you, Artemis." And kissed her.
Artemis kissed him back, letting her paws travel down his torso to his tail, then lower.
James watched the two lovers kiss and when Artemis' paws found purchase on Roland's butt, he said, "I'm going to head next door to see Sensei and leave you two alone." He hobbled back to the door, but before he left, he said, "Roland, don't go and give your parents grand-kittens, quite yet." He left, leaving the two lovers kissing.
They heard the door close, then they pulled back from their intense kiss. They both took a few deep breaths, pulling the depleted oxygen back into their lungs, then Roland asked, "Did we scare him off?"
Artemis was still reeling from Roland's kiss. Her face was completely flushed and her body trembled ever so slightly.
Roland instantly noticed Artemis was shaking, and asked, "Are you alright, Artemis?"
His question pulled her out if the spell she was under. She pulled herself out of his embrace tuned around to face the wall, then asked, "No, Roland, you have me feeling like a timid little kitten again, and I hate it! My father raised me to be a confident she-cat, not one that acts like a shrinking Violet."
Roland took a couple of steps towards her, only to hear her say, "Don't come any closer, Roland!"
He stopped in his tracks, and waited for her to finish.
Artemis wrapped her arms around herself, slightly lowered her head to face the floor, then said, "I have't told you everything about my past Roland. If we are going to let this relationship blossom into something wonderful, you need to know everything." She took in a few shallow breaths, then continued, "I wasn't always a Dance Instructor. After my father left me, I became a Murderess for Hire. I've killed quite a few in the name of the Society without thinking twice."
Roland slowly crept his way forward, closing the distance between the two of them, hanging on every word she spoke.
"That's not he worse of it. My father was deeply in debt, so after he left me, his Debtors came to collect. They took me against my will to the Society where I after I was molested and beaten, several times, I was given a choice. Do their bidding, or pay the ultimate price."
Roland was close enough to gently place his paws on her stomach, rest his head on her left shoulder, then said, "I'm sorry you had to go through all of that, Artemis. You may have had a crappy life before. But now, all I see is the she-cat who brings joy and happiness to her students. The she-cat who is fun to be with. The she-cat that can be as playful as a kitten. The she-cat, that I'm in love with." He gently turned Artemis around so she could face him, brought his paws to her lower back, then asked, "Artemis, you mean the world to me. I know I'm young and probably shouldn't be even thinking of asking this question. However, I can't deny what my heart and my head wants, and they want you." He took a half-step back, took her paws in his, then asked, "Artemis, when the time is right, will you marry me?"
Artemis' eyes started to water after she heard the guy who she had only dated for the few months, the guy she told herself she shouldn't fall for, but did, ask for her paw in marriage. "Roland, are you sure you want to marry me? I'm broken. Even though I do have very strong feelings for you, I don't know if I will ever truly be able to return what you feel for me," she asked, on bated breaths.
"Artemis, after our date last night, I wondered what it would be like to wake up and have you lying next to me. In my dream, there you were, on my right side. Your head resting comfortably on my chest, and on your finger, was my ring. Artemis, that dream felt so right. I really want to experience life, with you at my side, as my wife." He pulled her to him and held her tight. Then said, "You think you are broken? Maybe slightly dinged, but not broken. I believe you can love and I want to be the one you love, for the rest of your life."
She turned her head to the right, resting against his chest, listening to his heart beat. Then on a whisper, she answered, "Yes."
Roland thought his ears were deceiving him while his brain processed her answer. "Did you just say, yes?" He softly asked.
"I did," she answered, running her claws lightly up and down his back. "Now, I want you, Roland. I want you to make me feel loved. I need you to make me feel loved."
He picked her up in his arms, letting her legs drape over his left bicep, while she wrapped her arms around his neck. They both brought their lips together, and shared their first of many kisses as an engaged couple. He then carried her back to her office, where as soon as he entered, he closed and locked the door.
An hour later, they were both laying on a blanket on the floor. Both were panting, quite heavily from making love. It was almost as Roland envisioned it. Artemis was on his right, her head was laying on his chest, the only thing that was missing, was his ring on her finger. He made a vow to reconcile that, very soon.
Artemis was coming down from a euphoric high. No one has ever made love to her the way Roland did. All of her other partners used her for her body alone. There was little to no emotions behind the acts, simply two bodies coupling. Not with Roland. He made sure her pleasure came before his. He was gentle, caring, and loving, where before to her, sex was violent and hurtful. "Roland, that was amazing," She said, letting the claws on her right paw gently graze across his left peck. "I'm going to have to keep you on a very short chain so you can't leave me."
He quickly kissed her, then said, "I'm not going anywhere, Artemis. Except, maybe your place. I want to move in with you."
"I'd love to have you move in with me Roland," she said, looking him in the eyes, before resuming her previous position. "Although, if you move in, we might not be getting much sleep. You are quite talented in making me purr."
Tim and Jasmine arrived in front of the studio in their patrol car. They had orders to arrest one of the instructors on the charge of Homicide.
Jasmine looked at the peaceful studio outer of the window, then said, "You know, Lisa is not going to like this. Why do we have to be the ones who arrest Artemis?"
"I don't know Jasmine," Tim answered. "I know, I'm going to hate myself afterwards. Have you seen Lisa when she talks about how great of a teacher Artemis is, especially with the younger kittens?"
Jasmine turned around in her seat to face Tim, then said, "I have. Lisa actually glows when she talks about Artemis."
"Speaking of glowing, I do need to get back to the station. Candice's first OB appointment is today. I kind of want be be there to see the ultrasound," Tim said.
"I still can't believe you knocked her up on your honeymoon. I thought you both wanted some time together, before starting a family?" Jasmine asked.
"We did Jasmine. I guess Bast had other plans in her mind. You should have seen Candice's grandmother's face light up, when Candice told her she was pregnant. She let out a roar of happiness so loud, the house shook," Tim said.
Jasmine laughed for a second, then asked, "Did you ever imagine yourself being married into a pride of lions, Tim?"
"No, I didn't Jasmine. However, I can't see my life without Candice in it," Tim said. He looked at the building over Jasmine's shoulder, then said as he put on his hat, "Let's get this over with." And got out of the car.
"I'm going to hate myself as well Tim," Jasmine said before she out out of the car and joined Tim at the front door of the studio.
As they entered the studio, they found Artemis and Roland, cleaning up the studio. Jasmine approached Artemis, while Tim made his way over to Roland.
"Artemis, I'm officer Harper," Jasmine said, then shook her head before she refocused her gaze on Artemis, then said, "My partner and I have been sent to take you in. Please turn around and put your paws behind your back. You are under arrest."
"Arresting her!? On what charge?" Roland asked, as he went to approach Artemis.
He was stopped by Tim, who answered, "She is being charged with Murder. I suggest you back off, unless you want to join her?"
Roland backed down, but his fists were clenched at his sides.
"Artemis, I don't want to do this," Jasmine said as she pulled out the Pawcuffs from her belt. "Please, make this easier on all of us and put your paws behind your back."
Artemis complied with Jasmine's request and slowly put her paws behind her back and waited for the cuffs to be fastened.
Roland stood there like a statue, knowing there was nothing he could do in order to help the she-cat he had fallen for. "So what happens now, officer?" He asked with distain.
"We are going to bring her downtown to be questioned, then arranged. Unless she has bail money, she will probably end up in jail," Tim answered.
Both Artemis' and Roland's stomach dropped when they heard the word 'Jail' leave Tim's mouth.
"Surely, there is something I can do to keep her out of prison?" Roland asked, almost pleading.
Tim put both of his paws on Roland's shoulders, then said, "I don't know what your relationship is with her. But according to the DA, she has killed many. They are still taking dead bodies out of the river, all were killed with the same M.O. I suggest you say good-bye to her until she is arranged and a Trial Date is set."
Roland watched as Artemis was lead out of the studio in cuffs. Her tail and head was low and she looked defeated. He was. About to go after her, when he was stopped by Tim, who said, "Don't make this any harder on her than it has to be."
"Do you know what its like to be so far in love with another, that you would gladly give up your life for that cat?" Roland asked.
"I do, I married her a few months ago," Tim answered.
"Then, back the hell off and let me be with my fiancée," Roland said right before he took off and ran out of the door to be with Artemis.
He saw her being loaded into the back of a Patrol car. Her once cheery face was now will of doom and gloom. Roland ran over to the car and placed his right paw on the window, so Jasmine couldn't close it, then said to Artemis, "I will find a way of getting you out of this mess."
Artemis rose from her seat, kissed him deeply in front of Jasmine, then said, "Call Lisa and Felicia, They'll know who to call." Then sat back down.
Roland let go of the window and watched as Jasmine closed the door. She turned to face him, then said, "I'll be with her the entire time. Lisa sort of told me her story already, and I will do everything I can to make sure she's placed in one of the nicer facilities." She reached up with her left paw, gently laid it on Roland's cheek, then returned to the Passenger's seat of the car.
Tim went over to the Driver's side, got in, and drove away, leaving Roland standing outside. A tear rand down the left side of his face, then went over to the Dojo to talk to Felicia.
End of Chapter