Khloé Kardashian’s love life is always a big mystery, but her friends seem to know why she hasn’t had a serious relationship in years. The 40-year-old reality star is apparently still in her feelings over ex-boyfriend, and father to her two 𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘥ren, Tristan Thompson.

The Cleveland Cavaliers basketball player reportedly has kept Kardashian in the friend zone, but she longs for something more with her ex. “Khloé has turned down so many guys, she’s tried to go on dates, but she just can’t connect with anyone the way she does with Tristan,” an In Touch Weekly insider claimed. It’s hard not to think back to the trauma Thompson put her through with his first cheating controversy while she was in labor with daughter True, 6, and his second cheating scandal that resulted in Maralee Nichols giving 𝐛𝐢𝐫𝐭𝐡 to his son Theo, 2. At the time, a surrogate was pregnant with Kardashian and Thompson’s second 𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘥, son Tatum, 2.

Tristan Thompson (Photo by Brian To/Variety/Penske Media via Getty Images)

“As much hell as he’s put her through, and as much as she denies that she still has romantic feelings for him, the fact is she just can’t seem to get over him,” the source added. When the news that Nichols was expecting a 𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘥 with the 33-year-old athlete broke, their Hulu series cameras caught Kardashian’s devastation. “Everything is a lie, everything is manipulation. It’s deceit… Did Tristan have every opportunity to tell me? Yes. Was Tristan going to tell me if there wasn’t a 𝑏𝑎𝑏𝑦 involved? Absolutely not, and that shows a lot about his character,” she said in a confessional, via Buzzfeed News. “The entire thing is despicable.”

The Good American founder had a brief relationship with a private equity investor in 2022, but the romance only lasted a few months, according to People. But sometimes it feels like she’s living in the past. “Every single day, I feel bad about Lamar [Odom],” she said of her ex-husband’s drug addiction on a July 2023 episode of The Kardashians. “Every single day, I feel bad about Tristan [Thompson] not being on a team right now.”

While Kardashian reportedly sees Thompson as “the love of her life,” her dream “to live happily ever after” with him doesn’t seem like a realistic option. “It’s something Tristan really doesn’t seem ready for at this point,” the In Touch Weekly source pointed out. “But at the end of the day, she has zero romance in her life and it’s really unhealthy because whether she admits it or not, she’s obviously holding out for Tristan.”

Let’s hope Kardashian meets the man of her dreams who will remain a constant presence in her life and give her the love she deserves.