It's Above Me Now.

15: More Bullshit

Hanschell wasn't just talking when she said my wishes were her command. Ms. Grady was the real deal. Two days after our meeting, she proved that she was all about the action by getting started on the reconstruction of the orphanage. I was greatly surprised by her swiftness, as she took me along for the ride. She personally let me see what she was really about.

Impressed wasn't even the word to describe how I felt about her. This woman was fucking phenomenal. The way she handled herself, her business, her time. I wasn't ashamed to say I was learning a lot from her. Hanschell was top tier.

And not to toot my own horn, but I believed that she was feelin' me too. As we swatch paint and picked out fabrics, I noticed her checking your boy out and smiling at my very often sarcastic comments. We were making a great team as she morphed my ideas into reality. And I couldn't wait to get her comfortable enough so she could tell me all about Phil, Karin, my father maybe. She had to know something.

Now don't get me wrong, I was truly enjoying my time with her and her team. Hanschell was giving a true educational experience. But if there's anything I learnt from being amongst my parents for the past couple months, it was to trust very little and believe just as little. Hanschell was beautiful and talented, but I knew better than to get wrapped up in her flair and become some whipped puppy. Hanschell knew some things, and I had to find out what they were.

I began to have that feeling about Hanschell as she talked more about her upbringing and her direness to leave it and stay away from it. Her demeanor and vocabulary alone gave away so much, I don't think she realized it. Ruben didn't even flinch when I told him I was partnering with Hanschell. I expected him to be disappointed seeing that I didn't connect with the more high powered agencies and construction sites, but his placid and bland attitude showed otherwise. Shit, they were all probably conspiring together. And it was seriously doing something to my paranoia. I hated being left in the dark when I could clearly see the bullshit between the lines.

"I'm thinking that we should call it a day." Hanschell said. "We've done so much today, let's not overdo. Rome wasn't built in a day, right?"

Snapping out of my mental Ruben/Hanschell tirade, I glanced over at Ms. Grady and cracked a small smile. We were back at 'The Grady Experience' after a very long day of being out and about, and we were seated in her office reflecting on all the moves made. Hanschell was doing most of the talking, which led me to zone out in the first place. But now here she was glaring at me with a fixated grin and kind eyes. Damn, she was fine.

"You're right." I replied, grabbing my jacket. "I'll catch up with you...tomorrow?"

Hanschell nodded, getting out of her seat to walk me to the exit. I was then greeted by Lou who opened the backdoor of the Range Rover for me, waiting for me to hop in. Hanschell and Lou exchanged pleasant smiles, and she wished my bodyguard and I a good night. Call me overly suspicious, but even the gestures between Hanschell and Lou were suspect. It was probably nothing, but my mind was going haywire. They were all a bunch of fucking sneaks. Anything was possible.

"So how's everything going?" Lou questioned when we were on our way back home. "I made your parents promise me that they wouldn't pry in your business, but that doesn't mean I can't be nosy."

I laughed lightly. "Everything's going better than I expected. The recreational center is coming together perfectly. I'm grateful for Hanschell. She's a real gem like you and Bud expressed."

I saw Lou gleaming brightly. I didn't have the energy to ponder what that could possibly mean so I simply let it go. It was tiring and frustrating constantly thinking that the people that were now in my life had an ulterior motive or were hiding things. I wasn't giving up on finding out the truth about everything, but I was going to take a break. My mind needed it.

"And here we are, all safe and sound." Lou announced when we returned to the Moss mansion. "Have a good evening. Mr. Lou's got a date tonight, so out out you go."

Bursting out laughing, I gave Lou a dap and exited the Range. Lou was a character alright, but I'm glad that he had a life outside of being at the Mosses' beck and call.

The house was dead silent when I entered, but I did hear laughing distinctively when I walked up the staircase. It was Veronica's laughter, and I couldn't help but smile at the beautiful noise. She rarely showed any signs of happiness and being joyous, so I was happy that someone or something was bringing her cheerfulness.

Knocking on Dylan's door, I waited patiently for him to swing the door open. Dylan's been acting pretty weird and distant since the Hanschell meeting, and I wanted to chop it up with him to make sure we were straight. My brother wanted no parts in helping me with Hanschell, claiming to be busy and having other things to do. I had no time nor energy for his strange behavior. If he had a problem, he better address it.

I was standing by Dylan's door for a good two minutes until I finally barged in. Glancing around the spacious room, I realized that he was nowhere to be found. Walking around his very untidy room, I heard him singing ridiculously loudly in his bathroom. I shook my head and smirked. He was in the shower, and would have never heard me knocking from outside.

I was going to leave quietly and come back when I thought he was finished, but his pinging phone was grabbing my attention. Now normally, I would never check another man's phone. That shit was weak as fuck and honestly wasn't none of my business. I trusted Dylan with my life, he was my brother from another mother. I've never had to question his loyalty, so why start now, right? But as I contemplated some more, I decided to take a look. Because the only person who hits him or me up this hard was Karin.

And sure enough, I was right. She was sending him a boatload of texts, and I was unable to view them all because I didn't have his password. I tossed his phone back where I found it, huffing and puffing. I've never been the type to jump to conclusions, especially with Dylan but I was getting angrier by the second. There had to be a reasonable explanation for all of this, but doubt still formed in my mind. Could Dylan intentionally want to link with Karin? What the fuck could he possibly be telling her, and what was she even saying to him? Dylan hated Karin, or so he said.

My own phone pinged, and I quickly answered. It was Veronica saying she needed to see me urgently because we had guests downstairs. I sighed heavily, trying to shake off this fresh problem that I was now facing. Dylan was still in the shower, and I left his room quickly. The big dawg and I was going to have a serious conversation when I was done being Veronica's little prince. And for the first time since I've known Dylan, I was actually unsure of how everything would unfold.