Maura Higgins gave Pete Wicks an ultimatum to either commit to their relationship or walk away, claims a new report.
The 34-year-old ex-Love Islander was one of the stars of this year's series of I'm A Celebrity... Get Me Out Of Here!, while TOWIE lothario Pete competed in Strictly Come Dancing with Jowita Przystał. The pair, who have been friends for years, had been dating for around five months before their careers took them to opposite sides of the world last month.
According to a new report, Maura told Pete that she wanted more commitment from him - and it was time to stick or twist.
A source told the Daily Mail's Katie Hind: "Before Maura entered the jungle, Pete wanted to make their relationship exclusive. But Maura, aware of Pete's reputation and his close bond with Jowita, decided to slow things down. She gave him an ultimatum: either commit to me fully, or let it go.
"So she went off to Australia a single woman and Pete was sad about it." The source also told the publication that 36-year-old Pete's hopes of a reconciliation were bolstered when Maura spoke about their romance on the ITV show, explaining that she had never been "in love" before, but her current situationship "felt different".
The insider said: "Since then, Pete has gone all-in, openly expressing his feelings for Maura to anyone who will listen,' says a friend. 'Although he continued to dance with Jowita weekly, their off-the-floor relationship wasn't as close as it had been at the beginning."
During her time on I’m A Celebrity, Higgins spoke about “missing” an unnamed man she had been “seeing since July”, remarking “he’s not an a**hole”.
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When asked by former Strictly Come Dancing star Oti Mabuse if she was single, Maura replied: "I am but I was seeing someone before I came in but I'm not in a relationship." Reverend Richard Coles then asked: "Was it exclusive? Or if I've put you on the spot, sorry!", to which Maura replied after a long pause: "I dunno."
The model and influencer also gave away that she and Pete had known each other for a long time and that the long-haired star had pursued her relentlessly.
"Yeah, we've known each other since five years, and never once..." she told Oti. "He would always say, 'Oh no, like, we are gonna go on a date somewhere'. And I'd be like, 'We're actually not'. And I was deadly serious, 'We're actually not. You're delusional."'
Speaking about her first date with Pete, Maura said he spared no expense in treating her: "We went out for oysters and wine. Yeah, come on. It was super nice."
Teasing how things are going now she said, "We just dial up 24/7 with each other. We've got the very same humour."
Maura's alleged ultimatum appeared to have done the trick. The Daily Mail's source adds that the couple were in frequent contact after she left the jungle, and he was pictured in a group selfie taken at a London hotel room once she landed back in the UK.
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A clearly delighted Maura was pictured beaming in a selfie with her pals, with Pete lurking in the background. The typically straight-faced star looked slightly glum as he posed in the room packed with Maura's mates.
No doubt Maura and Pete will have plenty of time to catch up now after he was kicked out of Strictly the week before the final.
After being eliminated from I’m A Celeb, Maura said she was “proud” of Pete's journey on Strictly and appeared to confirm a romance with him on ITV’s This Morning, when she joked that she would let presenter Alison Hammond be a bridesmaid at their wedding.
Maura said: “You do forget about the cameras, and I do like to keep things private, but let’s be real, I said it. I can’t remember saying it, but I said the words, ‘I miss him’. I do miss him, like I missed all my friends and family.
“Honestly, he’s been so supportive, honestly. I didn’t know if he was still in Strictly and I’m so proud of him, he’s proud of me, and I can’t wait to see him when I get back.”
The pair have been romantically linked for a while, and Wicks recently denied rumours of a romance between him and his Strictly professional dance partner Jowita, saying: “We have great chemistry because we’ve become such good friends.”
Reps for Pete Wicks, Maura Higgins and Jowita Pryzstal have been approached for comment.
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