Love Her Wilde

Losing Control: Dylan

Time seemed to past like a lightning bolt. Before I even realized it, Chicago began to warm with spring. As much as I hated this city in the winter, I LOVED it in the spring: everything green and growing, flowers and trees blooming. Everything felt new. Alive. A rebirth of sorts, and I was more than ready for it. I think most people in the city were.

There had been no new information on my stalker, but things seemed quiet on that front, too. I was getting various anonymous messages on my OnlyPatrons and other social media, but nothing threatening per say. Just the usual "I'm hiding behind a keyboard so I can say whatever I want to this woman who shows her nipples" bullshit. No attacks at the house, no violence of any sort, and yet... I couldn't shake the feeling that I was being watched. Not really when I was at home so much, but when I was out. Whether work, or simply hanging out with friends, it always felt like someone was watching me. I'd voiced my concerns to the police and Asher, and pretty much everyone around me, but nothing (or no one, rather) had presented itself, and if whomever this person was, wasn't making moves, there wasn't much that could be done.

It also seemed like all the guesses Ash and I had about suspects, were wrong. Brock had apparently moved to St. Louis with his new girlfriend, and from everything that the cops could find, hadn't even returned to Chicago since. Ash had them look into both his father and Bridget as well, but again, nothing. All of their time was accounted for, all of their phones and accounts were clear of anything that could pertain to me. Nothing. I was honestly beginning to feel like maybe I had imagined it all. That maybe all of this being on guard and at attention at all times had done nothing but turn my brain into a constant storm of paranoia, but Asher wasn't so sure. He still insisted on the cameras. He still wanted to know about every remotely uncouth message I received. He still watched me like a hawk, and it was... suffocating to say the least.

Despite the fact that we'd really only been dating a handful of months, things between Asher and I had gotten tense. He'd gotten lost in his desire to protect me, and although I loved that he wanted to, it was draining. Everything we did, every move we made, he overanalyzed and came up with hypothetical scenarios that would probably never happen. I think if he could've just built a panic bunker and shoved me into it, he would've. He was almost obsessive about it. It was this dark cloud hanging over his head, and I was beginning to feel like my Asher no longer existed.

But then, just as I was beginning to wonder how much more I could take: he got a new job. Asher took a position heading up the legal department of a college buddy's construction company. They'd only recently expanded enough that having their own lawyer at their disposal seemed in their best interest and the second Asher was asked, he jumped at the chance. He even got to hire two of his own assistants, and instantly, things began to feel lighter. He was busy, and he got out of the house. As much as he insisted the opposite, I knew that just hanging around his house or mine for six weeks was doing nothing but weighing him down. Between the stalker business, and him starting to worry about his future, it was clear he'd slipped into a bit of a rut.  He was darker, quieter, and the smile I loved so much became rarer and rarer with each passing day. However, the second he started working again, the second he had something else to focus his attention on, I got my goofball back. That wasn't to say he didn't still worry. Of course, he did, but it wasn't as intense. It wasn't making it hard for me to breathe anymore. It felt like a normal amount of concern. And the longer time went on with no major occurrences, the lighter the weight of it all got. The time we spent together went back to being nothing but love and laughter and fun and more sex than I think I'd ever had in my life. It finally started to feel like he was around because he wanted to be, not because he felt like he NEEDED to be, in case something happened. The Honeymoon phase was back on track, and I... I couldn't have been happier.