This story is based on my story called Precious Cargo, but is not meant to be canon to it.
Precious Cargo and my characters of Annie Latrans and Joe Latrans are copyright © The Silver Coyote 2005.

This story was inspired by something Aramis Dagaz wrote for me that was in a similar vein, which supposedly someday will make it's way into the chronicles known currently as "A Little Nothing" (ALN). However, the catalyst for this story is an honor that belongs to Aslaug and her short story called "A Little Something". It's confusing, I know, but Aslaug's short story is also the beginning of yet another chapter of the ALN series. Anyway, I hereby formally thank Aslaug and Aramis for the inspiration to write this little bit of fun. Join me as we spend a bit of time with Annie and Joe on a lazy summer day...

A Day With Annie and Joe

A large two-axle truck sat at the top of the driveway, blocking most of the opening for the garage door. Not quite as big as a semi tractor, it was roughly comparable to a five ton delivery truck except it had no cargo box. It was not, in fact, a delivery truck at all, but a hybrid tow vehicle for large recreational vehicle trailers. Seven feet wide, eight and a half feet tall, and twenty one feet long, the North American General AC300AT was much larger than the SUVs that had been so popular a few years ago. It’s large, four-door cab could accommodate five full-sized furs and their gear with ease without utilizing any of the hundred cubic feet of storage area behind the rear seats. Behind this large cab a standard fifth-wheel hitch sat on thick steel plate decking. Tipping the scale at four and a half tons and capable of towing a sixteen ton trailer, the three hundred horsepower diesel-electric was certainly not the average family pickup truck.

This particular AC300, a dark metallic green color, was not quite road-worthy at the moment. It’s forward tilting fiberglass hood lay on the lawn on the side of the driveway opposite the large home attached to the oversize garage. Pieces of hardware including most of a turbocharger lay on the concrete driveway, along with various other parts. A roll-around toolbox sat directly in front of the forward bumper, several slide-out drawers partially open and a dirty shop towel hanging from one corner. A boom-box sat on the driveway next to the roll-around tool box, music from a local rock station played at a quiet background level.

It was a beautiful summer’s mid-morning in eastern Orange County, the sky was devoid of clouds and the blazing sun hung high overhead. The typical summer haze of the greater Los Angeles Basin reduced visibility to around five miles or so, but a persistent if gentle breeze out of the canyons to the east kept the air locally smelling of sage and oak instead of hydrocarbons and other industrial pollutants. The temperature was already approaching ninety degrees, and the bird song of the early morning had given way to the drowsy buzz of the various insects that engaged in their industry in the heat of the day.

Annie Latrans took this in as she wandered out of her front door onto the large, shaded porch of her home. She blinked behind her Oakley sunglasses. She had been out back on a lounge chair on the patio while she spoke with her son Chris on the phone, but was now free to come and see what her husband was up to. A Maryland Red Fox, she was dressed in her rather typical summertime at-home attire consisting of a white cotton halter style midriff top and denim cutoff shorts that covered the essentials and not much more. Over this she wore one of her husband’s heavy cotton work shirts, unbuttoned but tied at the waist, sleeves rolled up above the elbows. Rounding out her ensemble was a pair of soft leather wagers with three inch heels.

The red fox stood on her porch, arms akimbo, as her eyes adjusted to the bright sunlight. As she looked towards the driveway a forest green Yukon kali roused itself from the shadows of the garage and wandered over to see what she was doing. By the time the young kali had climbed the few steps to the porch her tongue was lolling in the heat. Annie reached down to scratch the pooch behind the ears.

“Hi, Mojave.” The kali’s tail wagged in greeting, and Annie couldn’t help but wag her own tail a bit in response. “Where’s my husband?”

The kali turned her head to stare briefly at the truck in the driveway, and then circled around the fox to lay down on the porch behind her. Annie gazed at the AC300.

Actually, to be more precise, she gazed at the denim-covered behind that was crouched atop the exposed diesel motor of the truck. She easily recognized the color and shape of her husband’s tail, somewhat thin now that they had shed so much of their undercoat for the summer. The upper half of his body was hidden from her view, he was crouched over the motor facing away from her, no doubt working on something.

Joe had, in her estimation, a fascinating behind. She loved these moments that presented themselves now and then, opportunities to appreciate her husband’s physical form without his knowing about it. As she watched she heard repeated bursts of a rapid, metallic clicking sound that she knew was associated with the use of a tool called a ratchet. The tail that pleased her waved in rhythm with the sound. After about fifteen seconds of this the tempo of the bursts slowed, and suddenly the coyote stood erect atop the motor, his back still towards the house. Joe exhaled loudly as he raised his arm to wipe his brow against his left biceps. He was devoid of clothing from the waist up, clad only in his work jeans and boots.

Annie removed her strappy heels and proceeded to descend the steps of the porch, holding the shoes in her left paw. As the kali watched passively from the porch the fox strolled casually and quietly across the lawn, stopping before her bare feet came in contact with the heated concrete of the driveway. At this closer range she could see that her husband was quite dirty. Grease and grime coated much of his backside. She smiled, the tips of her fangs barely visible as her tail wagged slowly in approval. She could see where Joe had rubbed his dirty paws across his own behind, possibly looking for tools stored in his back pockets.

“Hey!” she called to him, her smile broadening ever so slightly as he flinched just a bit in surprise.

Joe Latrans turned slowly atop the motor of his truck. The view that met his gaze, as usual, took his breath away. Annie’s stunning figure was almost overflowing the skimpy top she wore beneath his old shirt, and those gorgeous legs of hers seemed to rise right up to… well, there was lots of ‘em, lets leave it at that. The coyote smiled.

“Hello Angel.”

“You’re dirty,” Annie said flatly.

Joe laughed quietly. “Can you blame me?” he asked innocently. “I can’t help where my mind goes when offered a visual treat such as what you’re presenting me with!”

Annie chuckled as she looked at the driveway, shaking her head slowly from side to side in exasperation. She looked back up to him after a few moments.

“No, silly. I mean you’re dirty!” She held a paw out to him, pads up. “As in filthy. You look like you’ve been rolling in grease.”

“That bad, huh?” Joe asked with a note of guilt in his voice.

“Nothing a good washing won’t fix,” the fox replied. “What on earth are you doing?”

Joe stuffed a ratchet in his back pocket as he stared down at his wife. He squatted down, placing his right paw on the forward end of the motor, and then hopped to the ground next to his tool box. Snagging the shop towel off the box, he turned to his wife, smiling.

“I just bolted that new inter-cooler into place. Another thirty minutes worth of work and I’ll have that turbocharger hooked back up. I should be done by lunch time.” The coyote walked towards her as he wiped his paws on the already dirty towel. Annie held up her paws as if to say ‘stop’.

“What? Do I smell that bad?”

The fox grinned. “Joe, I love the way you smell.” She fingered the open front of the large shirt she wore. “Why do you think I wear these around the house all the time?”

The coyote grinned. “’Cause they make you look incredibly sexy?”

Annie made a noise that sounded like a game show buzzer. “Wrong! But nice try…” She laughed gently at his facial expression as she leaned forward slightly. She lowered her voice to a hoarse, conspiratorial whisper as she changed her stance, enhancing a bust line that needed no enhancement.

“I can smell your scent in these shirts,” she said, staring through her sunglasses into his blue eyes. “It makes me half horny most of the time when I wear them. I feel like you’re always wrapped around me. That’s why I like wearing your shirts!”

A brief look of astonishment crossed her husband’s face, exactly the reward she sought for teasing him so.

Joe almost leered as he edged closer to her. “So what’s the problem…?”

Annie extended a single finger of her right paw and poked Joe in the middle of his chest, gently pushing him back. “Mechanical mess turns me off. You’re covered in grease and oil and God knows what. I’m not a machine, Joe. I’m a vixen, and I like my males clean and smelling like furs, not machines.”

Joe nodded, feigning disappointment. “I see…”

“And here’s the four one one,” the vixen before him continued, tapping his chest. “We’re going over to Ken and Teri’s this afternoon.”

Joe’s expression brightened. They hadn’t seen their friends in several weeks.

“So you’re going to be clean, or you’re not getting anywhere near me or my car.”

“Damn!” Joe growled, looking at the Cadillac STS parked behind their truck. “You know how I like that car.”

Another opportunity! Annie thought. She smiled seductively and purred “I know how much fun we like to have in it…”

How does she do that? Joe wondered for the thousandth time. How a red fox, a canid, could make that purring sound was quite beyond his comprehension. It was a major turn-on for him, as she well knew. He knew that he was being teased again.

“Do I have time to finish?”

Annie dropped her paw as her voice returned to normal. “Tell you what. I’m going to brew some iced tea. I can have a big cold glass of it ready for you in about thirty minutes. Can you have your stuff cleaned up and put away by then?”

Joe nodded.

“Do you want a sandwich to go with that?”

“I’ll split one with you…”

“And then you get cleaned up, OK?”

Joe nodded again, smiling slightly. “Yes, mistress!”

Annie turned on her heel and walked slowly back to the steps of the porch, putting a lot of energy into her hips and tail. She knew Joe was rooted to the spot he stood on, watching her. And he was. As she climbed the steps slowly she paused and looked back over her shoulder, a paw on a hip. It was a classic cheesecake pose.

“Well?”

Joe licked his lips, suddenly aware that his throat had gone dry. “Well what?”

The red fox giggled, the sound almost like a melody. “Get busy, coyote mine! You haven’t got all day.”

She turned and continued to the top of the steps, strolling slowly towards the door to their home as Joe was suddenly a bundle of energy, trying to move three ways at once to clean up and put stuff away.

Mojave glanced sleepily from Annie to Joe, and then lay her head between her paws and closed her eyes to doze. Her pack mates were so odd sometimes…

# # #

Lunch was good, Joe thought. It had been turkey and cheddar cheese on whole wheat bread, and he must have consumed at least a gallon of iced tea between the first glass Annie had bought him on the driveway and the last glass he had finished just before coming upstairs.

Joe was now in the shower of their master bath. The master bedroom of their home occupied the entire upper level, and also contained an office for Annie. It had two walk-in closets, dual vanities, a small sofa at the foot of their enormous bed that faced the entertainment center, and a recliner in the corner. It was equipped like a mini great room, including a small refrigerator and a microwave oven. Annie’s computers occupied a large corner desk group next to the entertainment center.

Joe worked shampoo into his hair and the fur of his head. He knew he had been dirty, yet he was surprised by the amount of dust and dirt that had washed out of his thin summer coat before he had begun to scrub himself up with soap. He must have looked pretty messy, even by his own standards.

He was rinsing the shampoo from his head, and so had his eyes closed and didn’t hear anything except the water running over his ears. Yet as the paws touched his shoulders gently he was not surprised, and knew by their touch exactly who they belonged to.

“I thought you were already clean?” he asked, eyes still closed. The paws ran across his shoulders and down his arms. He felt warm breath against his right ear as her body pressed against his backside.

He heard a giggle. “The kind of dirty I am,” the voice murmured in his ear with a sultry tone as the paws stopped at his wrists, “water and soap won’t clean.”

“Excellent!”

Her voice brightened. “I thought you could use some help with your back.”

“Sweet.” Joe smiled as he opened his eyes, turning around as she let go of his paws and stepped back. Again he found himself short of breath as the most beautiful red fox on the planet met his gaze. She was, of course, dressed for the shower, which was to say that his shirt and her halter, cutoffs, and heels were in a small heap on the floor on the other side of the glass shower door. Even as Annie’s fur became soaking wet she was stunning, instead of losing her figure to the water from the shower head, her fur sticking to her skin somehow accentuated her curves, making her seem even more desirable than she had been earlier.

“Hey, your face is clean now!” Annie exclaimed gently. “How convenient.”

The fox wrapped her arms around the coyote’s waist and pulled him closer while she tilted her head up slightly. She looked at him with half-lidded eyes, a hint of a smile crossing her muzzle. He grinned back.

“You may kiss me now…” she breathed.

It was all the invitation he needed. The world outside could have exploded in flame, and neither of the canids in the shower would have noticed. As their lips met the rest of creation ceased to exist, and for them there was only the other, the water, and their need. For though they had been together for well over twenty years and their youngest pup was almost an adult, the fire within them burned brighter now than it had on their first night together. Their passion had improved and been enhanced with age, like a fine wine from a bottomless cask it’s nuances grew on each of them over time.

Now granted, showers are not the most comfortable of places for two furs to get together; they can be somewhat confining and dangerous if one gets carried away. Yet with care and practice they can also be a lot of fun, as these two well knew. So within a few short minutes all concerns about clean fur and visiting with friends had been cast aside without a second thought, and the fox and the coyote had focused very tightly on each other and the pleasure they gave to and took from one another.

There had been an initial rush of passion as the kissing had begun, while paws wandered and drifted to places not normally exposed to public view. And as they explored and delighted each other with paws and noses and tongues they were at the same time comfortably familiar with and enchantingly new to each other. Even though there was virtually no part of the other’s body that each did not know intimately, had not explored a thousand times over already, it was as if it were the first time, breathtakingly new, ecstatically rewarding. They must have chewed through thirty gallons of hot water just in foreplay.

Annie broke their kisses finally, taking a deep breath while she paused to let her pulse stabilize a bit. She felt like she was charged full of electricity, every nerve ending in her body was broadcasting it’s own message of pleasure to her brain. Gentle pressure on her husband’s hips directed him where to move in the shower, and within moments they had exchanged places in the large tub. The water cascaded freely over her head and down her back as she faced the valve handles on the wall. She felt him gluing himself to her from behind, felt his arms around her, his paws roving over her breasts, her stomach, her pelvis. She sighed loudly as she reached for the back of his neck with a paw, turning her head to meet his hungry mouth.

Time passed and they rearranged themselves again. After a bit they paused to catch their breath. Annie had her shoulders to a wall of the shower, her arms wrapped around Joe’s neck, her legs wrapped around his torso. She could feel the strength and power of the muscles in his neck and shoulders and back, could read his intent in his eyes, could measure her effect on him by the tongue hanging a bit over his bottom teeth as he panted.

Joe had one arm wrapped around Annie’s torso, another supported her bottom. Her muscles were easily discernable to him though her wet fur, he felt her wrapping herself around him as thought to consume him totally. Her blue eyes met his, and for a few moments they were still, as connected as a couple can get, simply staring into each other’s eyes. Neither spoke, neither needed to. All they needed to relate their complete emotions to each other was expressed through their eyes, a facial expression, a brief, tender lick of a muzzle. This lasted for perhaps half a minute, and then Annie smiled hungrily, her fangs plainly visible.

“Take me home, my shepherd,” she said quietly. “Show me the way.” It was a plea. It was a command. It was a spell. It was all of that, and more, and the passion overcame Joe. He became intoxicated by the angelic vision before him, and his rational brain more or less went out to lunch. In a sense, he went on autopilot.

More time passed. The water temperature had diminished noticeably, but neither one seemed to care. They were both standing now, exhausted yet energized, finished yet never done. Arms wrapped about one another, Annie also had a leg wrapped around one of Joe’s. This kiss had gone on for quite some time, yet neither seemed to be very much concerned about breathing. Eventually, however, Joe did break the kiss. Taking a deep breath, he uttered what for him had to be the classic understatement.

“You are… amazing.”

The vixen in his arms smiled, the side of her muzzle rubbing gently against his. “I can’t help it,” she whispered into his ear breathlessly. “It’s the company I keep.”

The coyote smiled, staring at his bride. He had never felt happier in his life than he did at this moment.

They held each other for several more minutes as their pulses slowed and their respirations returned to normal. After a bit Annie released her husband and reached for a shampoo bottle. Motioning with her free paw, she instructed her husband to turn around.

With his back to her Joe felt her begin to work the shampoo into the fur of his back, starting at his shoulders and working down. Her claws massaged his skin while spreading the shampoo through his fur, and she worked slowly down his spine to his tail and below.

“I can do that, you know…”

She giggled. “No way, lover! This is as much fun for me as it is for you.” She patted his behind, finished with her work there. She stood and admired his soapy backside briefly, and then commented “Maybe more.”

Whether he needed it or not, she helped him work the shampoo though the rest of his fur, and within minutes the rest of him was as clean as his back was, his skin warm and tingly. A gentle touch turned him to face the vixen once again. They smiled to one another as Joe closed the valves. The water stopped.

She handed him a towel.

“Dibs on the fur dryer,” was her only comment.

“You are my angel,” he said, suddenly serious. His paw reached for her, a finger gently stroking her cheek. He saw the love in her aqua blue eyes, felt the connection he shared with his Fox, their souls and destinies forever intertwined with their love and faith. He also saw something else glittering in those eyes.

She giggled. “We need a bigger hot water heater, lover.”

Joe smiled slowly, nodding. “Soon as I get the truck fixed I’ll get right on that.”

“Tomorrow.”

Another nod. “Tomorrow.”

“I have plans for you tonight,” the red fox said coyly.

“Ai Chihuahua!” Joe moaned comically. “Are you never satisfied, girl?”

She kissed him quickly. “No,” she said, winking at him briefly as she opened the shower door. “And neither are you!”

# # #

"Those two..." Debbie Latrans muttered quietly as she rolled her eyes at the ceiling. She was sitting at the breakfast bar in the kitchen of the Latrans home, a glass of iced tea on the bar before her. "You'd think they were my age, the way they carry on." The seventeen year old coyfox grinned at her companion.

Mojave grinned as only a kali can, thumping her tail against the floor.