Reservoir

She’d had her book opened for hours. From the moment she walked in the door after work, she escaped into their bedroom, pulling her books and papers from her bag and spreading out on the small desk. It was the biggest test of the year and she had to prepared. Every night before, she had tried, only to get distracted by other things. Tonight however, she had a special plan.

John came in the door in the same fashion he always did. The dog’s toe nails clicking against the wood floor and his constantly humming filled the silence house. She heard him call her name three times from the kitchen as he opened the fridge like always, pulling a beer from the shelves and popping the top off. He yelled again. “Tania, baby, where are you?” She could practically hear the smirk in his voice as his feet hit the first step.

“Baby?” He spoke softly, pushing the door opening. Tania stayed focused on her text book, ignoring the way he stepped in, pushing their pets out and announcing to the empty house that he and Tania needed “privacy”.

She bit back the set of giggles she had in response to the gesture. Her back was turned to him but she felt the plan she came up with was enough to sustain whatever he was planning. The room stayed silent other than the pages she’d flipped through and John taking sips of his beer. The psychology course she was forced to take was time consuming and difficult, forcing her to stay on campus for studies and read the difficult textbook. But thus far, she as acing the class. This test was the biggest and most weighted and of course, the one that had stressed her out the most.

“Tania.” John stated again, taking a step closer.

She didn’t answer at all, keeping her mind focused on not cracking and looking as if she was truly consumed by the task in front of her.

John did it three more times, each whine followed by a step closer to her. His hands hadn’t touched her yet, his kiss still away from her, and yet, she was already feeling the effects of him. Rejecting his advances would be hard, but pretending they weren’t happening at all would be a struggle.

When he brushed his hand across her shoulder, she bit down on her tongue. Her eyes stayed glued to the page as she tried to comprehend how memories were form while John’s hands traced across her shoulder and down her arm. “Baby.” He mumbled, leaning down so his breath hit her skin. Somehow, Tania managed to ignore it, stuck on the same sentence.

He pressed one kiss into her clavicle, distracting her from the words. He tried another, brushing the stubble of his chin across her skin and kissing spots up her neck, stopping under her jaw. Her name fell from his lips in a sigh. It was no longer easy. John’s methods of seduction were hard to sit through, yet she was. The book balanced on the edge of the wooden desk as her mind was no longer focused on it. Instead, she put all her energy into suppressing the soft moan building inside her throat.

After another kiss, John stopped, throwing his hands up in defeat. “Fine.” He groaned, stepping away from her.

His attention went to stopping else. She listened to his rummage around the room, picking up articles of clothing and hanging them on the hanger. She smiled in victory, twisting around in the chair. Her eyes stayed on him as he turned around, finally meeting her stare.

“What?” He said sharply.

Tania walked over to him, wrapping her arms around his waist with a smile. “I missed you.” She breathed, just low enough for his to hear. “And I’m happy you’re home.”

John gave her a skeptical look but nonetheless, followed with a hesitant kiss. Before her could step away and ask what had changed suddenly, Tania’s arms moved so she could wrap them around his neck and pull him close. Things continued from there. His clothes slowly fell to the floor while hers were tossed to the corners. He was the one to guide them to the bed, pulling her down on top of his so she straddled over him.

“Thank you.” She sighed into his neck and her hands tugged at his hair. “You’ve been more than helpful.”

He replied with a heavy chuckle, “What do you mean?”

“Now, I finally know the difference between positive reinforcement and negative punishment.” She pressed a kiss to his lips after the finally word.

“Wh-what?”

“Earlier.” Her lips hit his again, “That was negative punishment. I took something away, attention, until said behavior went away. And now, positive reinforcement. I gave you something, attention, to encourage you to continue a behavior.”

He gave her a baffled look, watching her smile spread. “So I’m your experiment?”

Nodding, she pressed a kiss to his lips as she dragged a finger from his neck to the elastic of his boxers. A heavy smirk covered her face, “But don’t worry, baby, Imma reward ya really well now.”