I fit your description pretty closely so maybe you can relate to my experience. I got back into biking about three years ago. I now have three bikes. They are a Giant Escape 1, a Specialized Sequoia Elite and a Norco Blue cross bike. The Giant is a hybrid with flatbars. It weighs about 28 pounds, has triple front with a 9-speed rear. I use 28's tires on it that are good on pavement where I ride almost all of the time. The Specialized is nearly identical to the Giant in many ways. They have about the same wheelbase, both are triple fronts with 9-speed rears (the Giant has a wider gear range) and the Specialized came with interrupter brakes so that I can brake with may hands on the tops of the dropbar. It weighs about 23 pounds. The cross bike weighs about 18 pounds, has a shorter wheelbase, a double front and a 10-speed rear. They are all good bikes, but the bike I prefer riding almost all the time is the Giant. I often ride with people who have road bikes and we maintain a pace of about 16 mph (sometimes faster). I have not found the Specialized or the cross bike to be any faster. I have three bikes because I had the Giant and thought I'd be faster with a lighter bike with dropbars. It hasn't really worked out that way. I've discovered I appreciate the stability of the flatbar, the range (11-34) of the Giant's cassette, and I find I much prefer trigger shifters and brakes over the "brifters" on dropbars. I agree with the comment that the first thing you should do is get narrower tires with a tread good for pavement. I think you'll find that will make a big difference. Good luck.