Reasonable Doubt: Volume 2 (Reasonable Doubt 2)

“I’m sorry, Mr. Hamilton.” She cleared her throat. “I’m Gloria Matter from the parole board in New York City. I’m sorry to call you so late, but I didn’t want to turn in until I returned your inquiry from last week,” she said. “The inmate you called about is no longer an inmate. She was released recently and is now on parole.”

“I’m aware that she’s on parole.” I poured another drink. “However, I’m pretty sure leaving the state is a direct violation of those terms. Is New York soft on crime now? Do you let previous offenders roam the world as they please?”

“No sir, but she checked in with her officer this morning. We also checked her monitor the second we received your phone call so she’s still in the state...I must warn you that we don’t take too kindly to false reporting, Mr. Hamilton. If this was some type of—”

“I know what the f**k I saw.” I seethed. “She was here.” I hung up. I didn’t care enough to think about Ava right now.

I headed into my bedroom and lay against the sheets, hoping this second round of alcohol would work better than the first.

I lay there for an hour, watching the seconds on my clock tick by, yet no sleep came and thoughts of Aubrey began to fill my mind. I was thinking about the things she’d told me when we we’d first met, things she’d told me about her sex life, and I had the sudden urge to hear her voice.

I rolled over and scrolled down to her name.

“Hello?” She answered on the first ring. “Andrew?”

“Why haven’t you sucked a c**k before?”

“What?” She gasped. “How about ‘Good morning, Aubrey’? Are you awake?’ How about asking those things first?”

“Hello, Aubrey.” I rolled my eyes. “You’re clearly awake, so I’ll bypass that unnecessary question. Why haven’t you sucked a c**k before?”

She was silent.

“Do I need to drive to your apartment and make you answer the question in person?”

“Are you really in need of this information at three in the morning?”

“Desperately,” I said. “Answer the question.”

“It’s just something I never wanted to do.” There were papers shuffling in the background. “One of the guys I used to date would ask me to do it to him from time to time—to reciprocate, but I just...I didn’t like him enough to do it.”

“Hmmm.”

Silence.

We hadn’t had an actual phone conversation since the last time we had phone sex, right before I found out her real name was Aubrey and not Alyssa.

“Were you thinking about me?” she suddenly asked.

“What?”

“Were you thinking about me?” She repeated. “You’ve never called me this late before. Are you lonely?”

“I’m horny.”

She let out a soft laugh. “Would you like me to tell you what I’m wearing?”

“I already know what you’re wearing.”

“Oh, really?”

“Yes, really.” I put a hand behind my head. “It’s Wednesday, which means you had practice until midnight, which means you went home and showered and immediately put your feet in an ice tub without putting on any pajamas.”

She sucked in a breath.

“And from the way you’re breathing right now I take it you’re still naked, and the reason you picked up my call on the first ring is because you want to touch yourself to the sound of my voice.”

Another gap of silence.