Nicole Richie and Brody Jenner break up

Things between Nicole Richie and her boyfriend of the last few weeks, Brody Jenner have gone from hot and heavy to downright ugly over the last couple of days. Richie's rep announced their official split to Us Weekly and People magazine on Wednesday and Richie herself made a cranky post on her Myspace blog about Jenner that day as well. How did these two go from hot to cold so quickly?

A source close to Brody told Perez Hilton that the "Princes of Malibu" star was sick of his girlfriend's "overbearing, manipulative and jealous ways." Nicole was particularly protective of Brody with regards to the time he had been spending with "The Hills" star Lauren Conrad lately. Brody's friend is currently dating Lauren's friend and "Hills" co-star, Heidi Montag. Said Hilton's source, "Nicole was trying to forbid Brody from hanging with his friends, and he would not tolerate that," a source tells us. "They just got together in the first place because Brody was looking for something fun and easy after his year-and-a-half long relationship with Kristin [Cavallari of "Laguna Beach"] ended. And, Nicole lives in the same apartment building as Brody, three floors up. It was a relationship of convenience!"

Jenner and Richie met for breakfast on Wednesday where Jenner shared his feelings with Richie. An insider tells Perez Hilton that Nicole asked Brody, "So does this mean we're breaking up?" When Brody didn't answer, Nicole jumped to the conclusion that it was the end of their romance. She reportedly rushed to get the word out that she and Brody had called it quits and posted a sour message on her Myspace blog. The message reads, "I know there are rumors regarding my "breakup" with Brody Jenner. The truth is, we were never really together. We hung out, and he's a nice guy, but my heart was never in it. Anything further is just a cry for publicity."

People and Us Weekly's sources claim that it was Nicole who instigated the break up. People reports that Nicole ended the relationship at Brody's house yesterday. An insider tells the magazine, "Nicole just wants to be single right now. She felt it was a mistake to jump into a relationship so soon after her breakup with [DJ] AM [her former fiancé]." Another leak explained the break up to Us, stating, "Brody likes to go out a lot and doesn't mind being photographed, but Nicole prefers to stay out of the press."

Photo: x17