Chapter 11: Haunted by the Past

ELLIE

I needed to remind myself why I hated him, why I shouldn't get close, and not dwell on how he made me feel. I had to remember what I went through last time, that would bring back my reason. At twenty-seven, I had already had my share of detestable men. And my ex, if I could even call him that, that dishonest bastard managed to shatter my heart. I promised myself that would be the last time.

I'd rather spend the rest of my life alone than go through that again. I often wondered if I was too dumb not to see the signs, but with so many mixed signals, the blame couldn't be solely on me. Men had this problem. Jerks couldn't be honest. They preferred to toy with a woman's feelings to get what they wanted, and they continued doing it to keep the sex. As if we were some kind of backup plan, to be used when they needed. Thinking about it made me want to cut off that bastard's dick, and it still made my chest ache.

Todd Lockhart got exactly what he wanted, to use me and discard me as i