On the heels of a legal win, Maralee Nichols, the woman who allegedly gave birth to Tristan Thompson's third child, is breaking her silence.
"Over the past couple of weeks, many inaccurate and false stories have been circulated about me. I have not at any point released—nor have I directed anyone else to release—any information regarding Tristan Thompson or any litigation involving him," she told E! News on Dec. 17. "I have never spoken to any media outlet, nor have I leaked any information to anyone at any time. I am providing this statement because I feel I must defend my character."
Earlier this month it was reported that Tristan was expecting his third child. While Tristan has his doubts that the child is his, he did admit in legal papers that he had sex with Maralee the evening of his 30th birthday in Texas, when he and Khloe Kardashian were still exclusively dating. While Maralee filed a paternity lawsuit against him in California, he filed one against her in Texas. Tristan's lawsuit was dismissed this week.
With the win in her back pocket, Maralee is attempting to correct reports connected to her pregnancy and fling.
"I have seen fake stories, unflattering photos of me, people using photos that are not even me, stating an incorrect occupation and age," she said. "There have been multiple fake Instagram posts claiming to be me, making false statements and attaching stock photos of a sonogram and a child (neither mine)."
"These are the facts: I have lived in California since 2019. I am not a personal trainer. I have not worked as a personal trainer for four years; I do fitness modeling. I was never a personal trainer for Tristan," she said, adding that she met Tristan at a party at his Encino, Calif., home in 2020, not in Houston as has been claimed.
"I saw Tristan in March 2021 around his birthday. He told me he had wanted to see me," she went on. "I agreed to meet him in Houston at a private party on March 12. I never drove a Maserati to meet Tristan, as he claimed. He has never even been in my vehicle. I used an Uber or was driven by friends that weekend. Houston was one of many nights we spent together. Soon after his birthday weekend in Houston, Tristan invited me to visit him in Boston."
Shortly after the Boston trip, she found out she was pregnant. Maralee then met up with Tristan in North Carolina in late April and told him about the pregnancy.
Maralee said she didn't want attention drawn to the pregnancy, nor did Tristan.
"Tristan filed a paternity action in Texas after I filed my paternity action in Los Angeles," she noted. "I did not file any request for child support before our child was born. The case that Tristan brought against me was dismissed on December 15, 2021."
"I was induced on November 29, 2021 because I had a placenta abnormality," she continued. "There is no other medical reason why I needed to be induced. I gave birth on December 1, 2021. Instead of focusing on any negativity, I am choosing to embrace being a mother and doing the best I can for my son. I do not want any further media attention, nor do I want a romantic relationship with Tristan. My goal is to raise our son in a safe, healthy, loving and private environment."
Remember, Tristan said the fling was a one-time deal, which she claims is categorically false. His court declarations also seem to counter that.
"Contrary to [Maralee's] many inferences in her declaration, we did not have a serious ongoing relationship," he said in court paperwork. "We saw each other sporadically between December 2020 and March 13, 2021 and did not have sexual intercourse in California during that time." Tristan, though, also said, "We might see each other on a sporadic basis for consensual casual sex only. From December 2020 through March 2021, we saw each other on such a basis."
"[Maralee] constantly used the term 'hook up' to describe our relationship which was the reality," he wrote. "I am certain that if the child is deemed to be my child that the only date of conception was March 13, 2021, because it was my birthday."