THEY’RE on two of the biggest shows in the UK, and set to be a reality TV power couple.
In last night’s I’m A Celebrity, Maura Higgins admitted she was seeing a well-known face before entering the jungle – and she was “missing him”.
She confessed: “It does [feel different this time], but then is it because we’ve known each other for a long time?”
With a smile, she added: “He’s not an a**hole.”
Although she never mentioned his name, it was clear to everyone she was talking about Pete Wicks – who she’s been spotted kissing on numerous occasions.
While Strictly star Pete has been publicly urging his Instagram followers to vote for Maura in the jungle, the pair have been extremely coy about where they stand.
But psychologist and relationship expert Jo Hemmings believes Maura admitting her feelings for Pete publicly will finally cement their relationship – and they’re set to follow in Sam Thompson and Zara McDermott’s footsteps when both shows end.
“Pete doesn’t want to be humiliated or embarrassed by the fact she might not feel the same way because I think he’s got a fear of rejection,” she says. “He probably doesn’t always know where he stands so I think her saying ‘I do miss him’ is quite a seminal moment.
“He needed to hear her say it before they could make it official, so I think that will cement it.
“He’s now heard her publicly saying how she feels and she even looked a bit shy and un-Mauraish while speaking about him.”
Pete and Maura were first spotted kissing in August on a lunch date in London.
Two months later, they were spotted getting cosy on a date at restaurant Gloria in London.
They were also seen all over each other at a Pride of Britain afterparty – and they shared this picture together from the night.
Pete was even teaching Maura some Strictly moves back in October, and looked very close with her.
However, both have been very coy about where their relationship stands.
Speaking on Paul Brunson’s podcast, Maura said: “We just get on very, very well. I adore him, he’s an amazing person.
“Do you know what’s so weird? We met very soon after me coming off Love Island and we just instantly clicked.
“Our humour is the same. It’s like that sick, dark humour. It’s very abusive. We abuse each other. Very nasty, it’s hilarious.”
Meanwhile, Pete was even more coy when his pal Olivia Attwood interrogated him over the pictures of them kissing.
On her podcast, he simply said: “Me and Maura have known each other for a long time.”
Even as recently as just days before Maura flew out to Australia for I’m A Celeb, they were photographed at a date night at the London Palladium, for a performance by pianist Ludovico Einaudi.
But, as she headed into the jungle, she told us in an exclusive interview: “I am single.”
Maura has become a fan favourite on I’m A Celeb and been forced to take part in some horrible Bushtucker trials.
The public have also been falling in love with Pete on Strictly, and voted him into the semi-final, despite him being the weakest dancer.
While insisting they’re “just friends,” they’ve been publicly supporting each other throughout their competitions.
After the release of his memoir Never Enough: My Words Unfiltered, Maura wrote on Instagram: “Proud of you.”
She also went to see him on Strictly with Sam, wearing a t-shirt with a pap picture of her and Pete kissing, and the words: “We can’t be friends”.
Alongside the cheeky snap, she wrote: “Hilarious night…U smashed it.”
Pete has also been supporting Maura while she’s been in the jungle, reposting a mocked-up shot of Maura, where she’s in a 1940s wartime-style outfit, with her hair tied back by a scarf, wearing a blue jumpsuit, and flexing her right bicep.
Pete captioned the pic: “She can do it! But she needs your help! Vote to keep our Maura in the jungle.”
The 36-year-old tagged his own message to the bottom, which reads: “There she is! My winner…Vote Maura @maurahiggins.”
He’s also “cooled” his relationship with his Strictly pro partner Jowita Przystal since Maura left for the jungle.
A source told the MailOnline: “Pete has gone all-in, openly expressing his feelings to anyone who’ll listen.
“Although he continues to dance with Jowita weekly, their off-the-floor relationship isn’t as close as it once was.”
Jo thinks the fact they can both see how well they’re coming across to the public is what’s pushing them together even more.
“They’re on the same level in terms of fame and celebrity,” she says. “And it’s almost like a little test to be apart on high-profile shows, as well as a test of how other people perceive them.
“He’s done really well, she’s done really well and I think their pride in each other will take the relationship up a notch.
“They’ll see something in each other that they wouldn’t see in daily life together, and they can see how other people respond to each other – and apart.”
After years of playing the field, Jo also believes Pete is ready to settle down finally.
She says: “They’ve been friends for a long time, and they’re both beautiful and hot and sexy, and I think Pete has always played up that flirty, sex appeal, but he has said in recent times he’s ready to settle down.
“There’s got to be a moment when everybody, all those players, move on to being settled down.
“And these two have this understanding of each other, the same sense of humour, the same values, and they discovered that as they were friends first.”
Jo even thinks they could be the next reality TV power couple, and are probably getting tips from Pete’s mate Sam – who won I’m A Celebrity last year – and his former Love Island star girlfriend Zara.
She finishes: “They can definitely do it. They didn’t just meet on Love Island like Molly-Mae Hague and Tommy Fury.
“They came out of completely different shows at different times, and have really resonated with people separately.
“They’ve both gone through a lot of different partners, and come out the other side.
“Also, Sam and Pete are best mates, and their lives are slightly echoing each other.
“Sam will be over the moon. The whole thing feels positive.”
