When it comes to Lamar Odom‘s relationship history, there’s one celebrity who comes to mind: Khloe Kardashian, 34. But there’s actually another celeb he’s had a relationship with, and no one even knew. In his new book, Darkness To Light: A Memoir, Lamar, 39, revealed that before Khloe, he dated Empire star Taraji P. Henson. “We ended up exchanging numbers,” Lamar wrote about meeting Taraji, 48, for the first time. “She was just such a wise woman that she could see through whatever smooth act I was trying to put on. She refused to be just another conquest, and truthfully, I didn’t want her to be.”
Lamar explained that he and the Oscar nominee ended up getting “hot and heavy” right away. “We started secretly dating and quickly fell in love,” Lamar claimed. “She introduced me to her fourteen-year-old son, Marcel, and was at my house nearly every day. Sometimes she’d bring some of her Hollywood friends, like actress Sanaa Lathan who starred in Love And Basketball.” He also said that dating the Hidden Figures star was “one of the happiest times of my life.”
Lamar threw another curve ball by bringing up Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie. Brad and Taraji starred together in The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button back in 2008, and the two couples decided to grab a bite to eat after the 2009 Golden Globes. Lamar says Angelina even complimented the chemistry between him and Taraji by telling him, “It seems like you’ve been together forever.”
Lamar admits, “I don’t think I ever connected with another black woman as deeply as I did Taraji.” But at the end of the day, he just couldn’t be faithful to her and she had enough. “Things were amazing, but of course, God gave me a layup and I blew it.” Lamar ended up meeting and marrying Khloe in 2009, shortly after his whirlwind romance with Taraji ended.