For The Love Of A Vixen II: Keepeth No Record
#2 of For The Love Of A Vixen
Jim & Kayla become closer, but a spectre of Kayla's past threatens their young relationship
Warning: Themes explored include domestic violence.
"Wahoo!"
I grinned as I put my foot to the gas pedal. The superbly tuned sports car responded, turbocharged engine screaming. Behind me, Kayla's twin fox kits Sam and Sasha screamed in delight as the acceleration pinned them against the seats, the safety harness straining to contain them.
Like most Sundays, the testing track lay deserted . Set as it was in a fairly rural area, there was nothing but grass, strips of tarmac, and the various small buildings that housed testing equipment. The huge oval that I guided the test car onto was all ours.
"Go faster, Jim, go faster!" Sasha shrieked as we rounded the curve and came out onto the straightaway. I laughed, the thrill of the speed and my delight in their excitement filling my chest. My foot stepped harder on the gas, watching the needle climb. 100... 120... 140...
In the blink of an eye the next turn loomed closer and I steered into it, braking carefully. The fox twins mirrored me, hands on imaginary steering wheels, giddy with excitement.
"Best babysitter ever!" Sam shouted, and my heart melted as Sasha yelped, "Yeah!"
Access to the test tracks "after hours" was an unofficial perk relegated to some of our bosses, but I'd impressed mine with some extra work to get permission for a weekend. Listening to the kits scream in glee, the extra hours and late nights necessary to get that favor felt completely worth it.
That mood carried us through hours of speeding about the tracks in a variety of vehicles. Both kits had even slowly driven one of the dual-control cars around one of the shorter tracks as I hovered over the backup brake and steering wheel. That particular experience got them very excited, and prying each of them out of the driver's seat had all but required a crowbar.
All too soon, the sun dipped towards the horizon and put an end to our day at the track. I dragged them home by main force just in time to feed them dinner and make sure homework was done before an exhausted Kayla stepped through the door. I winced at the sight of the hospital-issued scrubs as opposed to her normal ones: that meant someone had bled, vomited, or otherwise stained her personal scrubs. That didn't happen often, and indicated that she'd had a very rough day. Still, she smiled when she walked through the door and saw me washing dishes as the kits argued over homework at the dinner table.
"Mommy's home!" She announced to squeals as the two dove off their chairs to run to her. "How was your day with Jim?"
"We got to ride in a racecar-"
"I got to drive a truck-"
"Jim drives way faster than you momma-"
Childish excitement met motherly affection as she cooed over them, then tapped them both on the muzzle. "It's getting late and it's a school night. Go put your pajamas on."
As the two of them, grumbling, headed off, she padded over to me and took my hands in her paws. She smiled and pressed a kiss to my lips. "Thank you. The kits loved that."
"Of course," I replied, smiling. "I loved it, too."
She leaned her head against my chest, embracing me. "You're so good with them. I'm a lucky vixen." I froze as her lips worked their way up my neck to my right ear. "Would you like to be lucky with me?"
"Ohh, Jim!"
The older vixen writhed on my lap as I kissed softly down the line of her jaw. Not for the first time, I felt grateful that Kayla's bed possessed a headboard to let me sit up close enough to pay attention to her as I lost myself in pleasuring her. She panted and moaned and pressed up against me as my hands roamed her frame, a nipple pinched here, an ear-bite there. It was when I slipped a finger into her folds that she got noisy and my pulse quickened.
"How," she gasped, grinding against my hand as my second finger joined the first inside her. She momentarily lost the ability to speak when my thumb found the hard little knot at the top of her sex. "Did you get so good at this?"
I kissed the top of her nose softly. "It's called practice," I whispered, luxuriating in the feeling of her spasming heat gripping at my fingers. My manhood pulsed as she ground down against my hand and into my lap, making me stifle a groan. "You like to practice."
"You're a good-ohh!- student, Jim," she growled. "Going to keep teasing me, or should I pin you down and break your pelvis?"
"How about I try something new?" I hissed, rolling forward and pinning her under me. Caught up in the moment, I overlooked how she froze as my weight landed on top of her hips. How her eyes widened and pupils dilated. How her breath caught and the pounding of her pulse quickened into something almost frantic. "You always want to be on top, how about I--"
The sudden blow left me gasping for air as I folded in half around her fist. I collapsed off of her onto my back, more stunned then hurt. I could only suck desperately for breath, chest heaving as a chasm opened in my heart. The sound of sobbing broke through my shock and I looked up at Kayla.
She'd sat up and backed away in the moments while I lay insensate.Her paws covered her eyes as she wept, shoulders heaving. "Fuck, fuck, Jim," she gasped. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm such a fuckup, goddamn--"
I drew back, cautious, hesitant, my heart breaking at the sight of her distress. "Kayla, what'd I do?"
She shook her head, scrubbing at her eyes with her paws. "Nothing wrong, Jim," she got out.
Twenty three years of relatively sheltered life hadn't prepared me for this, but the sight of my first love bawling her heart out overrode the pain. "Can I," I gulped. "Should I go?"
"No, no," she shook her head desperately, crawling towards me. "I, I..."
She embraced me when I offered her my arms, clinging to me like her sole anchor in an empty *world, sobbing like her heart would break.
Klink, Klink, klink
Hissssss
The rhythmic sounds of water and ice felt strangely out of place, a mundane counterpoint to the surreal situation. It struck me as obscene, performing such ordinary actions even as my chest ached from the blow. Glasses full, I stepped out of the kitchen and approached the dining room table where Kayla sat, wrapped in her bathrobe. She seemed lost in contemplation, her chin resting on her paws, eyes fixed on the intricate patterns of the wood grain.
Wordlessly, I slid the glass of water across the table, taking a seat opposite her. "Thanks," she murmured, her voice devoid of its usual vibrancy, her ears sagging.
I took a sip, my mouth dry, and sighed, mirroring her actions. An oppressive silence hung in the air, thick enough to cut with a knife, until I noticed her paw slowly inching across the table. Fingers met paw pads and she interlaced her digits with mine, letting out a long sigh.
"I know it isn't enough," she said suddenly, her voice soft as she laid back her ears in distress. "But I didn't mean to hurt you. I'm sorry."
I gently squeezed her paw, the subtle movement continuing until she looked up at me. Our eyes locked, and words caught in my throat. "It's ok. I mean, it's not ok, but I don't," I shook my head, feeling adrift as I tried to match emotion to words. Finally, I gave up precision for meaning. "I love you." Another squeeze, and her ears trembled. "Can you just..." I gestured wordlessly with my other hand. "Just tell me why?"
She chuffed, the sound strange as she shook her head. "So, they say you're not supposed to talk about exes, Jim. But this is an ex story, alright'?" I nodded, slowly, my heart sinking, and she let out a long sigh.
"I met Danny my first day of college. Here was me, girl from the projects, and here was this handsome, hunky fox-boy that carried all my stuff up to the room like it was nothing. One thing led to another, we kept running into each other across campus, and, well," she looked away. "He had me eating out of his hand in a week and doing anything he wanted in two."
I shifted, awkwardly, the thought not particularly pleasant, and she stumbled on. "So, he was a junior in business, and I was a freshman in nursing. Moved into his house in the second semester and never really left. It was a good three and a half years. His family business is here, so after he graduated he had a good job and we had things I never had before," she put her head in her hands. "Even then I should've known better," she said softly. "He always wanted to know where I was and what I was doing. I could only go out on town if we went together. Some guy talked to me at a bar once and he about damn near started a brawl."
She cleared her throat. "Then I had a few weeks where I was bloated and throwing up, right after my season. I didn't want to do anything, but Danny..." She looked far away. "No one says no to Danny. I'd be in the guest room taking the suppressors to make life bearable and just trying to stay focused on schoolwork. He'd come in and no matter what I said he got what he wanted."
"So, Sam and Sasha?" I said carefully into the silence as she worried at the sleeves of her robe. I gritted my teeth at the thought of someone hurting Kayla, as if they couldn't see how precious she was , and took a few deep breaths to let the anger seep away.
She nodded. "Yeah. I was so happy." She shook her head, voice quavering. "I know I sound so stupid, but I loved him then, I really did. He wasn't always bad..." Her voice trailed away.
"So when I told him I was pregnant and he got so angry, I just, I just told myself that he was in shock. My parents," she shivered a little. "We weren't married then. My mom called me a slut, my dad called me a whore, they told me to get out of their house. I came home and found out that Danny's parents about ripped his head off, and, and," a tear dripped down onto the table as she shook.
I squeezed her hand, guilt shooting through my chest. "Kayla, it's ok, I don't-"
She held up a hand, glaring at me through the tears. "No. I couldn't tell you before, because I'm a worthless coward who can't-"
I squeezed her paw again. "Kayla!" She startled, and I took a deep breath. "Please don't," I said. "You aren't."
She nodded, short, sharp, almost frantic. "O-ok." She squeezed my hand back, letting silence fill the moment. "His parents had never really approved of me. They'd been angling for a while to get him away from me, and now that I had," she made quotation marks with her fingers, "'Trapped him,' that plan was dead in the water. He just," she said quietly. "Changed. He'd always liked to drink, but now it was every day, all the time. He'd be sweet and loving just like he was, talking about baby things, and then he'd suddenly be like the Devil, accusing me of locking him down, shouting about how his parents were making his life difficult because of me. He'd hit me if I got him angry enough. I didn't really want to sleep with him, I was so nauseous and my last semester of school had me exhausted, but if I said no," she shook her head. "He'd grab my paws and pin me down and," she squeezed her eyes shut, unable to finish her thought. Silence stretched out between us as I squeezed her paw. "After he was done he'd always tell me that my mouth said no but my body said yes, because, you know I'm, I'm, I'm easy..." she stammered.
I rose, heart breaking in my chest, and walked next to her. She didn't protest when I picked her up, only clinging to me and rubbing her face on my cheek for a minute that felt endless. "I'm sorry to make you-"
"Stop." I gave her a firm squeeze. "I really do love you," I murmured into her ear. "I just didn't know you could hit like that."
She laughed, the sound alien and abrupt. "Blame the martial arts classes I got into after Danny." She made a fist. "I guess six years of practice paid off in more than my black belt."
"Wow," I said, impressed. "You're a master?" At her nod, I fumbled for a joke. "There goes my man card, my girl is better in a fight than I am.
She rolled her eyes. "You can come with me and learn. Wednesday nights. Gym isn't far." She nuzzled him. "If you wanna get beat up by a buncha guuuurls, since it's mostly a lady's self defense class sort of thing."
"So long as it's with you." I shifted her in my arms so I could see her face. "Do you want me to go home?"
She hesitated. "No," she said softly. "Take me back to bed and hold me, please?"
I blinked. She'd never wanted me to stay the night other than our very first, and that had more to do with the prolonged activity of that night. She caught my expression.
"Jim, I, I tried to date after Danny. And no matter who it was, what they did, when I started treating them like a lover I started seeing him in them. You're," her voice caught. "You make me feel like I'm the most precious person in your world. That's, that's, that's special. You're special. I didn't want to mess things up with you."
I held her for a very long time that night, my chest her pillow, until she finally fell asleep.
The radio droned in the background as Kayla drove her little SUV through the streets of Detroit. Twilight shaded the sky, but it was still light enough I could see her face, and see the smile that grew across it when I tickled her paw off the gearshift and clasped it in my hand.
"You're cute," she murmured, glancing at me as she stopped at a red light. She shook her head. "I shouldn't compare you, but I can't help it. I don't know if Danny would've ever let me drive, or not hang onto my paw like it belonged to him, or put himself in a situation where a bunch of women would wail on him."
I mock-frowned at her. "You keep making promises that I'm going to get hurt. Did you not want me to come?"
"Not like that!" She protested. "We won't hurt you." An ear flick and snicker. "Much. Sensei will be happy, though, we don't see a lot of humans down here. It's the fur section of the city, not like the humie side that's all pretty and nice."
"Why's that matter?"
"You'll see." Still snickering, she hit the gas.
The dojo was a small space in an elderly strip mall, the front glass covered by curtains. The huge pit bull that held the door at our knock open growled at the sight of us. "This is the newbie, Kayla?" She asked.
I looked up, and up, and up at what had to be four hundred pounds of corded muscle and scars, topped with a dour frown on the black dog's face. Repressing the urge to run the opposite direction, I spoke up and offered her my hand."That's me. Jim!"
The frown vanished immediately as her muzzle parted, tongue lolling as she engulfed my hand in one paw. "Sensei Dara! But you can call me Dar unless we's on the mat, alright?" A huge doggy grin formed. "Humans, oh man, I haven't had a humie here in years. This is gonna be a blast!"
The barebones inside, featuring exposed lighting and impact mats over concrete floor, held a half dozen other students. They, like those that trickled in afterwards, subscribed to two major characteristics. Invariably female, and invariably fur. After a round of introductions, stretches, and a short lecture on the philosophy of karate, Dara called me up to the front for a demonstration of particular locks and throws. "So I'm your anatomy doll?" I joked.
She nodded, completely serious. "Joint locks and weak spots for strikes are species dependent, you know, and humies are way different than furs. The karateka should practice against all possible opponents. Like this." She leaned gently on the arm she was gripping, and I collapsed to the mat, hissing in pain.
"Oops?"
An hour later, I staggered off the mat, groaning, to Kayla's amusement. "It'll get easier," she said, soothingly.
"Slavedriver," I gasped, collapsing onto the floor and against a wall. But she wasn't going to drive me away that easily. "Are we on for next week?"
She leaned forward, eyes bright, and gave me a long, loving kiss. "Sure, if you are."
"Good man!" Sensei Dara's voice reverberated as she appeared from nowhere to squat next to me. "You know how to pick 'em, Kayla."
I blinked up at her. "How did you end up here, Kayla?"
"Dar is a lawyer." I eyed the grinning pit bull suspiciously, but she merely shrugged. "When I needed a divorce and wanted to keep my kids, she got me out and made the high priced fool that Danny hired show his ass in court."
"And martial arts?"
Dar extended me a paw and pulled me effortlessly to my feet. "My clients sometimes need to handle people who don't understand what a restraining order is. And knowing you can protect yourself helps with the mental games that people who do domestic violence like to play." She gestured at Kayla. "Most people graduate after a year or so. Kayla stuck with it. That's why she's a co-instructor now."
"You keep impressing me," I murmured to Kayla.
Her answering smile could've lit the room all by itself.
The morning sun lit the horizon in pink-orange gold as I slipped quietly through the bedroom door, closing it behind me with barely a squeak. As much as I loved Sam and Sasha, answering questions like "what were you doing in Mama's bedroom" was about as high on my priority list as running down the street naked. Just a few steps, then out the door and across the hall to my own place to sleep a few extra hours--
"Boo!" Sasha's grinning foxy face popped up over the couch and I nearly levitated off the floor.
"Sh- shoot! Sasha, don't jump like that!" I nearly shouted, trying to keep my voice down. "What are you doing up this early?"
Her brush waved gently behind her. "Playing games! Mama always takes away the controllers on Saturday and says we gotta run outside." Her ears flattened. "It's not fair, Mama doesn't want us to play games on school nights, or weekends, or anything!"
Sam popped up next to her. "What are you doing up this early?" He asked, cocking his head.
Sasha smacked him atop the head. "I already told you, him and Mama get all kissy-face!"
"Eww!" Sam made a face. "Really, Jim? Why do you do that?"
She smacked him again. "It's Mama. That's OK." She looked back at me as I tried not to laugh. Sam rubbed his head and muttered. "Mister Jim," she said, adapting her favorite cute face, head slightly tilted, ears forward, eyes wide and muzzle opened in a smile.
"Uh oh," I muttered. That expression only came out when she wants something.
"Make special breakfast?" She begged, grinning at me, voice rising. "Please oh please oh--"
"Shh, you'll wake your mama up!" I put a finger to my lips. "OK, OK, but you gotta keep the noise down." I made my way to the kitchen and frowned, considering the ingredients in the fridge and my growing but still limited cooking skills. "Still like french toast, Sasha?"
She bounced on her paws. "Yeah! And eggs! I want sunny side up!"
I shook my head at her. "The things I do for you," I murmured.
I wasn't expecting the fox kit to come up behind me as I turned on the stove. She put her arms around my waist and rubbed her head on my back, stealing scent as furs often do from people they like. "Thanks,," she said into his shirt. "You're really nice to us and Mama. Can you take care of her when me and Sam gotta go see Dad?"
I blinked, an ice cold feeling coalescing in my chest. "See Dad?"
"Yeah, we gotta go visit Dad for two weeks next month. I don't wanna," she muttered rebelliously, "But mama says we have to."
I skritched her behind the ears, in the magic spot that all foxes like, smiling as I tried not to think about how poor Kayla was going to deal with this. "Of course, Sasha."
She purred. "You're the best." A pause. "Is breakfast done yet?"`
"It takes longer than that to cook breakfast, you rascal!" I said, mock-sternly, and she bounced back to the couch to pick up her controller, giggling the whole way.
I'd finished setting a table for four and just started dishing up when the bedroom door creaked open. Kayla stepped out, tail waving gently from underneath her nightgown and bathrobe. "I see these two ambushed you for breakfast," she said with a smile. "And do I see naughty kits sneaking in video game time when they know better?" She called, raising her voice as she walked over to the couch. "You know what that means!"
Sasha's giggling started up again, then gave way to shrieks as her mother snatched her up and proceeded to tickle her. Sam dodged a grasping paw, but only to run right into my hands. Soon his own shouts and demands to "stoooopppp!" Joined Sasha's, until we'd tickled them thoroughly.
Doffing my apron, I sat down at the table as the twins took their seats and Kayla slid in opposite me. "Now what do you say?" She demanded.
"Thanks for breakfast, Jim!" The two chorused, then promptly assaulted their plates at the sort of speed common only to those dying of starvation and under ten years old.
She shook her head at them, then turned to me to offer that soft vulpine smile-- mouth open, eyes gentle and dilated, ears pricked forward with just a hint of pink blush showing through the white fur inside them. "Thanks. You didn't need to."
I took a bite and eyed the kits. "Someone said that they're going to see their Dad in a few weeks."
She winced. "Yes, about that."
I interrupted her. "Want to go on a little mini vacation? My treat."
Now her inner ears really pinked up. "I can check my schedule."
Sasha kicked me underneath the table, and when I looked over, gave me a big wink. That little shit!
Kayla put her paw on my arm as she let me in the door of the apartment one bright and early morning. "Thanks for coming over," she said quietly, eying the kits playing games and thus oblivious to the world. "He's less himself when someone else is around to be witness." She licked her lips, ears fluttering as though in a stiff breeze. I'm not used to seeing the confident vixen like this and watching her display this much anxiety to anyone with eyes to see unnerved me a little. "Just, don't react to him too much." She said, tail flicking back and forth. "Damn narcissistic bastard feeds on attention, and all he wants is to get a rise out of you. Don't give it to him."
I took her paw, trying to project some confidence on her behalf. "It's just twice you have to see him. Today and then in two weeks. At least we have a few vacation days right before the kits come back?"
She recognized my deflection for what it was, but accepted it. "You are mean, Jim," she said with a head shake. "Telling me to take a three day weekend but not saying what it's for?"
I shrugged. "You were the one who said you usually just work a boatload of overtime when they're gone to stay distracted." A grin. "Maybe I'll be a better distraction."
She smiled at me, trying to put on a coy facade over her nervousness, and bent over the haphazard pile of luggage the kits had made a mess of to fuss over things one last time. I watched the curve of her pleasant rump as her tail flagged up with the motion, swallowing hard. Ever since that one night she'd become abruptly less interested in sex, even if she'd become equally if not more so desirous for my embrace, and sleeping next to her night after night without relief had been... Difficult.
Too late I'd recognized that she caught me staring as she straightened up, but a trace of that old fire entered her eyes. "Going to put me on every surface in this place while they're gone?" She whispered, tail curling in that very particular 'take me, stud' motion that she'd used on me before only to abruptly pin me down and draw from me what she desired previously.
Wham
Wham
Wham
Before I could answer, the door shuddered with the blows of someone knocking hard upon it. She stiffened, every trace of arousal subsumed and buried underneath an expressionless mask. "Turn off the game, your Dad's here," she almost snapped at the kits as she opened the door.
The tod fox that oozed in the door set my teeth on edge. I didn't know what attractive fox-males looked like, but if I did he'd probably fit the bill. Tall. Fit, but not grotesquely over muscled, with a well-maintained red coat and bushy tail. The well-trimmed suit that he wore fit perfectly, obviously custom tailored to his frame. The arctic vixen that followed him wore a summer dress that discarded the concept of leaving anything to the imagination by substituting it entirely with reality. Someone had certainly spent a great deal of a surgeon's time getting that particular look.
"Kayla," he purred as the kits, only mildly protesting, shut off their game. "You've been eating well since we last saw each other."
I saw one ear flick as she gritted her teeth and ignored the barb. "All their stuff is packed," she gestured. "Clothes, toys, necessities. You have my number and they have a phone to call me in the evenings like we agreed. I'll see you Sunday the 29th at seven."
"I hope they're a little more well behaved this time," he replied, beginning to pick up bags as the vixen with him did the same. "You are far too permissive with them. That's alright, though, nothing that some fatherly discipline can't fix, though it should really be more often than every six months."
"Don't you dare lay a hand on them," she hissed, clenching her paws.
"Ah ah, the court agreement says otherwise. Discipline is the responsibility of whoever holds custody at the time the discipline is administered," he taunted her, baring his teeth in a grin as his eyes slid over me. "Someone is getting desperate, isn't she? A human, Kayla, really? Can't find a fox? You will hike your tail for anyone that will give you the time of day, won't you." A whiff of something from his direction made me wrinkle my nose-- alcohol?
"You're one to talk." She reined herself in with an effort.
The other vixen only chuffed in amusement, baring her own teeth, before Danny held up a hand. "Now, now, my dear, no need to be rude. If I can do better than the refuse of the East Side, I'm sure she can too."
Before I could say anything, Sam and Sasha were at his feet, chirping excitedly. "Hi daddy!"
"Kits, you are going to love this trip!" He switched gears to a happy, fatherly tone faster than a racecar's transmission could cycle. "I've got tickets to Michigan Adventure! Get these bags and let's get going!"
As they swung up their own backpacks and dashed out the door, Danny only smirked. "Be seeing you, Kayla."
The door slammed shut behind him with finality, as if a bell tolled. Her shoulders drooped, and I took her paw. "What an asshole," I muttered, and she squeezed it back.
"I hate this," she growled. "Gotta do what Dara said. Don't give him reasons to take things back to court where he can outspend me on legal fees." She took a few deep breaths. "We had shared custody to start with, but he just couldn't stop overstepping himself and every time he did Dara would haul him back in court and make him pay for it. I have full custody and child support and he gets them two weeks a year plus the occasional holiday. They barely see him." It sounded more like she was trying to reassure herself than anything else.
I stroked her paw. "Is it just me, or did I smell alcohol?"
"He's a functional alcoholic at this point." She sighed. "Doesn't drive much, at least, but it does worry me."
"The kits will be back soon, and we have some time to ourselves for once," I said, soothingly, trying to lighten the mood. "Do you want lunch at Manny's?" I offered, naming our favorite place where we'd had our first date and several since.
The smile she offered me was a fragile one, but it still made my heart thrum in my chest. "Sure."
"Again."
I faced off against one of the other yellow belts on the mat as Sensei Dara and Kayla leaned against the wall, eyes narrowed. The husky opposite to me began the kata with the lunge punch and I blocked high, sweeping into the kick that she blocked low. The sequence of attack, defense, dodge, riposte consumed the two of us in a blur until the snapped word.
"Halt!"
I disengaged, backing away to bow to my opponent as Celly did the same, panting lightly.
"Good," Dara said with a smile. "You've come a long way in eight weeks, Jim." Before I could respond, she jerked her head. "Kayla. In the ring. Free spar."
I held up one hand even as she moved. "Sensei?"
All traces of humor fled Dara's face. "Did I stutter?"
I took a stance as Kayla did opposite me. Sensei's bark shattered the silence between us. "Begin!"
I struck, and she flowed from block into a leg sweep that sent me to the mat. Even as I scrambled up Sensei was shouting to begin again. Thus went a very long five minutes, Kayla painstakingly disassembling my defenses while weathering my blows as if they didn't exist. At long last, Dara called halt, and I dropped to my knees to pant for breath. "Sensei," I got out at long last. She cocked her head at me. "What was the purpose of that?"
She chuckled. "What things do I teach you are most important in the study of karate?"
"Respect. Self-perfection. Excellence. Self control."
"Precisely." She began to pace as the other students paused to listen. "The study of the art is not to master the physical being, but to master the internal self. Any fool may toss a punch." Her eyes narrowed. "You'd be surprised how many students have had their boyfriends or husbands unable to comprehend that some girl can lay them out on the mat. And when they have this sudden loss of comprehension," she paused. "The truth that is buried behind layers of lies often comes out."
"A test of character," I said in dawning realization, and the big pitbull only nodded as Kayla smiled at me.
"Enough lollygagging in my ring! Kelly! Mina! You're up!"
As I made my way painfully to the side, Kayla tugged on my sleeve, her amused expression filling my face as she gave me a quick lick-kiss. "Still OK with getting beat up by a gurrrrl, I see," she said, ears flicking with amusement.
"I have my own skills!" I protested. "Like back rubs."
She nudged me with her hip. "Lies. I demand proof of this skill. Later." I mock groaned at the implicit demand for my hands, but smiled when she winked at me before turning back to instruction.
I thought we'd make it out clean when class broke up, but Dar intercepted me as soon as Kayla walked away to take a bathroom break. She put a heavy paw on my shoulder. "Jim," she said, her voice deep and serious. "I know you love Kayla, and she loves you. She's got a lot of shit to work through that she just hasn't, past few years. I can lead a horse to water but it ain't gonna drink kinda stuff. She wants to work through it now, she says. Maybe she is. But it isn't going to happen overnight. Give her time. Treat her gentle. A little grace, for when she slips up, alright?"
I nodded soberly, and her paw tightened a little. "Good man. Keep that heart of hers safe, OK?"
Kayla yawned sleepily in the passenger seat of my car as I merged onto the highway. "Where are we going, again?" She asked, slumping back. "I don't like coming off a twelve hour shift to get in a car."
I smiled. "You packed everything I said to pack?"
She rolled her eyes. "Of course. Now, spill."
"So I have a buddy at work," I began. "And his family has a cottage on a lake up north that nobody's using this weekend." I watched her startle awake, jaw dropping. "Remember when you said that I should show you how people from the west side of the state have a good time?"
"A beach cottage? Just for us?" She blinked, ears quivering.
"Gave me the keys to the boat and the jet skis, too," I said with a smirk. "Wanna learn to water ski?"
She smiled at me, but there was something delicate, something fragile to it. "You know I'm just an old, fat mom vixen, right? Why are you doing this?"
I put my hand on her knee. "Not to me, sweetheart."
"Really?" I could hear the quaver of uncertainty in her voice. I hated it.
I glanced over at her to see her with her ears back. "Don't let what the asshole said last week get to you." She folded her arms and I realized that she wanted more of an answer. "Kayla, I've had dates before and things. I've met girls I was attracted to before. But..." I let the silence build as I grappled for the words. "The only person that I've ever met that I just wanted to make happy is you."
The smell of her musk, that particularly foxy odor that said Kayla to my nose, wafted over me as she leaned across the console and laid her head on my shoulder. "Damn you," she whispered into my ear as I felt my heart melt. "Are you that serious about me?"
It took me a moment to speak past the tightness in my throat. "Very."
She nuzzled into my neck. "Good," she said after a while.
The sound of squeaky foxy snores, the warmth of her delectable fur, and the wild tinge of her musk kept me company during the rest of the drive.
Friday started with an early breakfast and karate on the beach, followed by something I'd been looking forward to for a while: teaching a newbie how to water ski.
An exhausted, dripping Kayla paddled her way up to the boat, gasping as I helped her up. "You dumped me on purpose," she accused, pointing at me with a clawed forefinger.
I kissed her on top of her muzzle, reveling in the scent of her again. It seemed different, strong, more delightful. "Now why would I do that?" I grinned at her.
She flicked me on the forehead. "You make my top come off one time, and then you just want to see it happen again."
"Do you blame me?"
The peal of her laughter across the water rang through my ears like a beautiful set of bells.
She snuggled up to me in front of the fireplace Saturday night as I fought the evening chill off with driftwood and flame. "Thank you," she said softly. I settled back down into her embrace. "It's been a wonderful weekend."
I kissed her, feeling her relax into me as we made out gently, losing myself in the feeling of warm fox and agile tongue and the scent of Kayla. Part of me flailed in confusion and I drew back, frowning. "Kayla, is something different about you?" I sniffed the air.
She flicked her tail, looking away. "I'm unlucky this year," she admitted at last. "My cycle split." At my expression, she elaborated. "Means I had a heat in fall like all foxes, and I'm going into another one now, in spring, and," she sighed. "It's messing with me."
"Messing?" I asked.
"I haven't had sex during my heat since Sam and Sasha," she said after a long moment, staring far away. "It's a cultural thing for us canids. You have sex on your heat with someone you love, when you're ready. And suppressors make me an asshole, so I didn't bring any this time. Didn't wanna spoil the trip." She squeezed her eyes shut. "I know I haven't been putting out lately. I know I've been weird. I went back to therapy again and stuff, I promise I still want you, it's just..." she shivered. "It's hard."
"I'll still be here when you get things figured out," I said, squeezing her shoulder gently. "Can I do anything? Sleep in separate beds? Not be so touchy? I'm sorry about earlier, I wouldn't have been trying to dump you off the skis so much if I'd known."
"So he admits it," she murmured, chuffing to herself. "You're always looking out for me, aren't you?"
I met her eyes squarely. "Always."
She clutched me against her for a moment, her breath quickening, then clenched her jaw and shook her head sharply. "Who dares, wins," she said softly, and then her muzzle came down on my lips like a hammer. Fighting against her strength would have been pointless, and so I let her wrap her paws around me. She pinned me, one paw curling behind my neck and one sinking deep into my rear, groping me shamelessly. Her tongue wrapped around mine, her flexible vulpine length tying my merely human one into knots as she kissed me with two months worth of built up frustration. The wild, musky scent of her sank into my nostrils, fresh and wild. She ravaged me with lips and tongue and paw for a long minute before letting go.
Those beautiful eyes gazed down at me as she panted for breath. "Take me to bed, Jim," she demanded, pushing at me with her paws until I rolled off the couch onto my knees.
"Are you sure?" I asked. Part of me wanted to pick her up and drag her with me, but the other part looked past her panting desire to the stiffness in her ears, the way her tail tucked up near her body, and my heart twinged within my chest.
She stood and drew me to my feet with the touch of her paws, pressing her body full length against mine. I grunted as she took hold of me and climbed up me like I was a tree. Her legs locked about my waist while she clung to me and kissed my neck. "I choose you, Jim. You aren't Danny." Her paws tightened. "I refuse to give him control over me anymore. Now," her whiskers brushed my ear, and I shivered as her hot breath blew a soft whisper into my ear, past my brain, and down below the belt. "Take this vixen to bed and claim her," she cooed.
To this day I don't know how we got there. My shirt she shredded with claws and teeth and let fall, ruined strips of cloth littering the floor around us. Without the barrier of my shirt her paws and mouth assaulted me, roaming every inch of my chest and neck. Not that she ignored parts below, for the moment she'd removed my shirt she yanked her nightdress over her head to discard it to the side. That gave her all the opportunity to show me she wore no panties as her drooling lower lips met my bare stomach before she slid further down. "Mine," she growled, rubbing her sex against the tent in my shorts and groaning deep in her throat.
I threw her down on the bed, reaching desperately for my far-too-tight pants, and she stared up at me. For a moment I stared back, transfixed by her beauty. The deep orange and white of her fur, giving way to black only on her paws, thick and velvety-soft. The soft swell of her motherly curves that made her the world's best pillow and blanket to cuddle on a cold night. The pleasant, plump handfuls of her breasts, the flash of her black nipples winking at me as if to announce her arousal. Her eyes caught my gaze and I lost myself in those emerald depths.
"Whatcha starin at, Jim?" She teased.
"You," I breathed. "You, beautiful."
She bit at a claw and ever so slowly parted her legs, spreading them wide for me to see. Her paw trailed downward, catching my eyes, leading them down to where she displayed herself. She arched a little so I could see the flash of those tantalizing black lips that waited for me. The orange fur of her groin had matted, drenched with the fluids of both heat and arousal, and the scent of her desire struck me as though she'd punched me.
Schlick, schlick, schlick
Her paw-fingers spread the lips apart as she sunk one deep inside, gasping. "Please, Jim?" She begged, and my shaking fingers finally undid the last button. I cast the jeans aside and climbed onto the bed to kneel between her legs. She thrust herself up at me, displaying, demanding. My heart pounded in my chest with desire at the sight of her lust for me, but the last few fragments of my conscious mind still held the reins. Still interpreted her shaking paws, the flicked back ears, the curled tail for the fear that they represented.
"You can still say no," I whispered, and then groaned as she reached up with a sopping-wet paw to stroke me.
"I want you," she told me, "But please be gentle?"
I let her guide my cock to those lips as she soaked the tip in her lubricant and pressed me into the center, then reached up. Her eyes caught mine as a paw secured each of my hands, fingers interlacing. Her feet clasped behind my back, rear arching upwards against me. "Kayla," I caught myself moaning as she guided me deep inside of her.
She was always wet, hot, and inviting. Or at least I'd thought so before. Now she was tight beyond belief, but so wet that plunging inside her was effortless. The heels digging into my back only pressed harder as I hilted inside her and she pressed back up, riding me from below, grinding hard as her voice soared. "Jim, Jim!" She growled, panting, calling, and then she lost the ability to form words. Only unintelligible noises of unmistakable pleasure came from her throat as I met her frantic grinding with my own thrusts. I bore her down, driving her into the bed as we built a rhythm together. Slow. Powerful. Deep.
That lasted for maybe a dozen thrusts before her legs tightened inexorably around my waist and she crushed my hands in her paws. Her quim spasmed around me as her muzzle lifted to the skies and she howled, screaming, gekkering. Once I might have come with her as she somehow became even wetter and her walls milked at me for the semen they so desperately desired, but I'd learned much of the bedroom since our first time. I gave her the short, sharp, hard pounding that I knew would drive her wild, holding back my own pleasure and biting my lip to stay focused. I realized in that moment the difference in us as Kayla surrendered to the beast in the depths of her pleasure. Her eyes became feral. Her howl rose, announcing to the world her orgasm. Eventually, her voice gave way to panting, strong muscles became quivering jello and she sagged underneath me.
I freed a hand and brushed her long black hair out of her eyes as she looked up at me, vulnerable as she always was in the moments after she'd come. "You ok?" I asked.
She reached up and gave me a gentle kiss. "Yes," she murmured. "I never really," she paused and swallowed thickly. "I never gave it to someone in heat like this, and, and," she took a moment to sort through her thoughts. "I love you," she finished, finally, unable to find the words as the delicate pink skin underneath the sparse white fur of her inner ear darkened in a vulpine blush.
I put my arms around her and felt her grasp me tight as she returned the embrace, laying her head against my neck. "I love you too, Kayla," I groaned as she pressed up against me again.
"My wonderful Jim," she whispered into my ear. "I know it's supposed to, but," she rolled her hips, humping up against me, "Making love to you when I'm in season feels amazing. God, I want you, give it to me?" Her voice caught. "Please?"
I sank deep inside her again and she spasmed, shaking. "More!" She begged, and her arms tightened around me as I yielded to her. If anything she was tighter now, wetter with the flow of fluid that had drenched me when she'd orgasmed the first time, and it was hard to be gentle like she'd asked. Then a paw seized my hair and pulled my head back away from her so she could look me in the eyes. "Fuck me like you mean it!" She demanded, and I lost control.
Pounding. Slamming. The bed shook and she squealed as I took her, unable to hold back any longer. "My mate!" She shouted, delirious. "Mine!"
"You're mine," I growled, and she threw back her head, exposing her neck. Part of me wanted to hesitate, but that part wasn't in control anymore. She screamed my name as my teeth fastened in her throat.
"Jim, fuck," she howled. "Fill me up!" I felt that inexorable tightening of her folds as she arched up as high as she could, legs wide, trying to get every last micron of me buried as deep as she could. The pressure built deep as my balls tightened. That was when she shouted,"Breed meeeee!"
No man alive could hold back in the face of that, and I didn't even try. I grabbed one handful of thick, delicious ass to give me leverage as I buried myself deep inside her one last time and groaned her name. My vision blurred as I filled her, rope after rope of sizzling pleasure as I heard her scream for me yet again, until the two of us slumped, panting, in our embrace.
I held her for long moments, luxuriating in the warmth of her fur that surrounded me like the warmth in my heart. "Breed me?" I questioned when words would come again. "Your heat?"
She looked away. "Some, but," she looked back, looking up at me. "Make an honest woman of me someday?" She asked, voice soft, vulnerable. "S-so I can get the meds and come home and have your litter?"
Some of the uncertainty must've shown on my face, for she gave me a gentle smile and pulled me against her. "Not asking for it today," she murmured. "But I wanna be that serious about you. I wanna have your kits someday, when we're both ready. OK?"
I kissed that beautiful muzzle, excitement, affection, and anxiety mixed in equal measure. "OK."
We didn't get much sleep that night. Or that morning. Turns out that satisfying a heat takes some doing, who knew? We lost track of time as our bodies met over and over again, until I was completely drained and she quite literally limped. Unfortunately, the fun continued to the point that we lost track of time.
I dropped into the driver's seat of my car, panting lightly, as Kayla did the same. "We are going to be a little late," I said, eying the GPS as I pulled down the driveway.
She yawned, covering her muzzle with a paw. "Worth it." At my expression, she shrugged. "If he wants to be mad that we're a little late, that's his problem. Now, since someone kept me up last night," a devious grin lit her face, "I am going to take a nap."
"Hey!" I protested. "It was you keeping me up, horny girl!"
Her paw covered my hand on the gearshift. "Go ahead and tell me it wasn't worth it," she purred.
"You're always worth it," I answered, squeezing at her paw, only to be answered by a snore. Shaking my head, I followed the GPS directions, letting the car eat up the miles as I settled into a happy daze.
The daze promptly vanished when Kayla's phone began to buzz with text messages as we got close to home. Her ears flickered back as she responded, muttering under her breath, but her good mood seemed impervious. "C'mon, let's go get the kits," she murmured as we pulled into the parking lot, and we took the stairs hand in paw. "Remember, just ignore him, he's gonna be a pain," she reminded me as we stepped out onto our floor.
The Danny that met us at Kayla's door looked a lot different from the one we'd seen two weeks ago.
His fur was a mess, he'd exchanged the suit for a rumpled polo and crumpled slacks, and he paced in front of the door as we rounded the corner. "No," he growled at Sam and Sasha, who slunk back against the door, "I don't know where she is." His voice caught at the sight of us. I watched his eyes flicker from her face to mine to our hands. His nostrils inflated, and I became acutely aware what Kayla and I must smell like as his face went in moments from mildly frustrated to ignited with rage. Teeth gnashed, ears cocked half back, and his eyes bulged.
"Too busy whoring it out to be on time?" He snarled. Kayla ignored him.
"Hey kits!" She said brightly, sweeping past the enraged todd to take their paws. "Did you have a fun time at Michigan Adventure?"
Their ears hung low. "It was OK," Sam said quietly, and Kayla's tail stiffened out for a moment. But only for a moment.
"Don't ignore me-" Danny barked, voice rising, only for her to spin and glare at him.
"Did anything happen that I need to know? Illness? Lose any of their stuff?" As he stuttered, rage interrupted, she nodded sharply and tapped her phone to the door lock. "Take your bags inside, kits," she said in a level tone.
"We are not done!" He shouted at her back while she ushered them in. "They are rude, disobedient little brats because you don't discipline them properly! And letting your boyfriend babysit is--"
"Is fine. I do believe you said that matters of discipline are the responsibility of the parent who has custody, which is me fifty weeks of the year." She spun, hand on the door. "Go home, Danny, you're drunk and making a scene." She gestured at the other apartment doors opening as furry heads peeked out for a glimpse at the drama. "Goodbye."
The door slamming in his face made him shake with frustrated rage. I took a step back, only for him to spin and pin me with his glare. "You!" He screamed, advancing on me, fists balled. "Taking my kits racing cars? Spending half your time off with them? All my damn son talks about is Jim this and Jim that. Won't get your goddamn name out of his mouth even with a good spanking. Grooming them aren't you, fucking pedo slime--"
Something snapped in my chest at the thought of this man beating poor Sam for the crime of being excited about our trips. "Just taking care of them when they need it," I growled back. I could hear the neighbors behind me, one of them shouting for someone to fetch the retired police officer who lived in our building, but it didn't matter. "If you're his father instead of just his sperm donor, remember he can hear you acting the fool and just shut up. Go home."
The haymaker crawled towards my head in slow motion as the reflexes Kayla drilled into me reacted before I could think. Rising block with my left arm to deflect away as my feet dropped into stance. Stepped forward. Rotated hips. Put that power behind the blow. Strike.
The hallway went silent as my fist made contact with his face and he slammed against the wall, limp, then slid down it into an unmoving puddle on the floor. I shook my throbbing hand, wincing at the pain. "Ow," I muttered. Then my head snapped up at the authoritative voice behind me.
Police Lieutenant (retired) Ferguson hobbled down the hallway rapidly, cane tapping at the floor in his haste as the bulldog's jowls flopped excitedly. "Nice hit, lad!" He cried. I blinked at him, and he laughed as he came up next to me. "Been waiting for your ladyfriend there to get tired of his shenanigans and give him the good ol' one-two!" He patted my shoulder. "Me wife's calling Nine One One, you just let me sort it out with the boys. Stay here a moment."
I stepped into Kayla's apartment feeling lighthearted. The police had all but ignored me after Ferguson had started laying into them, taking a burden off my shoulders. The paramedics had barely waited for him to be cuffed before taking off, one of them whistling at the sight. "His jaw's busted up good, man!" Maybe all's well that ends well?
She closed the door behind me, chuffing in amusement, as I took in the laid-out dinner table and kits playing quietly in the living room. "Did my knight in shining armor just break my ex's jaw?" She teased, holding out her paw for my hand.
I submitted, groaning as she expertly wrapped an ice pack around it. "Oh shush, you would've hit him better and harder than me."
"You do need to work on your strikes," she agreed flippantly. "But thanks. Dar said to try to avoid breaking him around the edges too much, makes court harder. After that little display, some charges, and the two of them asking me to please never go back," her tone hardened, "I think someone is about to lose his parental rights."
"Couldn't have happened to a bigger asshole," I muttered, and she pecked me on the cheek.
"How about I repay you with some dinner with the family?" She murmured.
"Whose family?" I asked.
Her eyes were warm as they fastened onto my face. "Yours, of course... love."