“Here we go. Break out the violins.” I rolled my eyes. “I’m not doing this with you.”
She crossed her arms. “You never do anything, Nate.”
I tipped my head toward the ceiling. “Here we fucking go.”
She placed her hands on her hips. “No, seriously, let’s go there.”
“Lydia,” I warned, rubbing a hand over my face, but she ignored me.
“You never showed up for me the way I needed. Everything was always about football. Your schedule. Your career. Even when I was struggling, you never helped me financially, even though you have more money than God.”
My jaw ticked. “You’re the one who made bad financial decisions. Last time I checked, you were a grown-ass adult. Since when is it my responsibility to take care of you?”
She placed her hands on her hips and glared up at me. “I was your girlfriend!”
I shook my head. “Still not my responsibility. You’ve made a lot of bad decisions, and if my memory is correct, you weren’t too worried about my money when you were sleeping with your personal trainer behind my back.”
Her dark brown eyes narrowed. “That’s not fair.”
“Actually, it’s accurate.” I looked at my watch. “Your time is almost up. So stop fucking with me and tell me what you want?”
“I’m in a tough spot and could use your help.”
I shook my head. “No.”
Her mouth fell open, clearly not liking being shut down so fast. “You don’t even know what kind of help I need.”
“And I don’t care.”
She pressed her lips together. “I’m pregnant.”
My body stilled. This felt almost cruel and was a reminder that she was building a life with a man she chose over me. “Congratulations. How is that any of my business?”
Her hands twisted in front of her. “Because I could use a little financial help.”
I laughed. “You’ve got to be kidding me.”
“Carlos and I don’t have the kind of money that you do, and with the baby coming, I just thought you might be inclined to help out.”
For a second, I thought I had misheard her. “You thought I would help support a baby that you’re having with my replacement?”
Big, fat, heavy tears fell from her eyes. “I didn’t know who else to turn to. Neither one of us has insurance, and medical bills are expensive.”
“Not my problem.”
Lydia was a content creator and apparently, not a good one if she was having trouble paying her bills.
Her bottom lip trembled. “You help out complete strangers all the time. I am not saying what I did was okay, but I gave you three years of my life! I gave up everything for you to be the supportive girlfriend. I put my career on hold, took a job that gave me flexibility, because football always came first.”
My jaw was clenched so tight I could barely get the words out. “You don’t get to crawl back here and make your mess mine. You made your choice. Live with it.”
“I’m scared, okay. We don’t have the money. I thought maybe you would help out. Not for me, but for the baby.”
“No,” I said firmly.
She sucked in a breath and blinked away the tears in her eyes. “So, you’ll write checks left and right for various charities. Help a random stranger off the street, but not me?”
“Don’t make me out to be the villain here, Lydia. If your boyfriend can’t step up for his own kid, then maybe you should do some serious soul-searching. Or better yet, ask your brother.”
