My boyfriend refuses to work or quit drugs — now I’m stuck paying his mortgage

DEAR ABBY: I am a 59-year-old divorced woman living with my 54-year-old boyfriend. We have lived together for seven months. He purchased the home we live in. Since we have lived here, I have made all the house payments. I also pay for the internet, utilities and all the groceries. We have four cats and five dogs between us. I feel like I’m supporting him. This was supposed to be a partnership in which we share the bills.

He quit his manufacturing job to go to school for a commercial driver’s license. It lasted a month, but then he couldn’t find a better-paying job because of things on his driving record from many years ago. After he finally got a job, his employer surprised him with a drug test. He failed because he tested positive for marijuana.

He said he smokes marijuana to cope with PTSD from his childhood. His employer said he’d rehire him when he got treatment at a clinic, but he started smoking again as soon as he got out! He can’t go back to work until he’s clean. He can only do a drug test with a male watching to ensure the protocol for the CDL federal requirements. In addition, he has a $1,000-a-month truck payment and is behind on that. He will probably lose the truck and expect to drive my car. I refuse to allow him to run my car into the ground.

I feel like I’m trapped into supporting this man who can’t seem to keep a job. What should I do?

— COULD KICK MYSELF IN ILLINOIS