Maura Higgins FINALLY confirms romance with Pete Wicks as the pair kiss at the Pride of Britain afterparty hours after she got cosy with Kai Widdrington

Maura Higgins and Pete Wicks finally confirmed their romance at the Pride Of Britain Awards after-party on Monday night.

The Love Island icon, 33, and Strictly star, 36, were spotted sharing a sweet kiss at the Red Bar of London’s Grosvenor House Hotel as they partied into the early hours.

Confirmation of their relationship comes after Maura stunned fans as she looked cozy with Kai Widdrington at the awards.

Maura and Pete, who first linked up in August, kept a low profile but shared a tender moment in the corner during the star-studded event.

Maura was seen planting a kiss on Pete’s nose before the pair packed on the PDA and kissed on the lips.

Hours earlier, Maura raised eyebrows when she was spotted hanging out with Kai at the hotel.

Kai, 29, and Maura looked very close as they walked around after the ceremony, with the professional dancer wrapping his arms tightly around the host.

At one point, Kai appeared to spin Maura around before the two of them went into another room.

It is believed that Kai is currently single following his split from fellow professional Nadiya Bychkova.

Meanwhile, Pete has fueled romance rumors with Strictly Come Dancing partner Jowita Przystał in recent weeks.

However, Pete and Maura appeared to be in love after sparking months of romance rumors after they were spotted kissing outside the Broadwick Hotel in Soho in August as they enjoyed an al fresco lunch.

The day before the pair locked lips, Pete showed off his impressive Strictly moves as he danced with Maura in a new TikTok video.

As Pete demonstrated his muscles by pulling Maura up by her leg in a daring move, she fell into his arms and the two stared into each other’s eyes. Maura captioned the clip: ‘A few concussions later…’

Pete and Maura were previously seen together as they enjoyed a night out at The Ship in Wandsworth with his Strictly friends.

An onlooker told MailOnline exclusively that the pair were inseparable, whispering in each other’s ears and even interlocking legs as they enjoyed drinks alongside Wynne Evans, Tom Dean and Jamie Borthwick.

The eyewitness shared, “They were all over each other, I was surprised to see them looking so close because I thought he had real chemistry with Jowita.

‘At one point they were straddling each other and didn’t seem to care at all that people could see them.

‘You’d think Pete would be more worried about Tom as he’d just gotten the switch to Strictly, but all he had eyes for all night was Maura!’

MailOnline has contacted Maura and Pete’s representatives for comment.

Maura also showed her support for Pete when she attended his Staying Relevant podcast tour, wearing a T-shirt with his face on it.

The model wore a personalized T-shirt with a photo of the pair kissing outside the hotel and added the words ‘We can’t be friends’ written in capital letters on the front of her chest.

She posed in the snap with an arm around Pete’s best friend Sam Thompson, captioning it, “Hilarious night… you killed it @samthompson @stayingrelevantpodcast.”

Last year the pair were filmed getting cozy at Grosvenor House in London.

In the clip, recorded in October 2023, Maura and Pete sat together in the corner of a room, apparently taking selfies with Maura’s phone.

They were seen looking into each other’s eyes during what appeared to be a deep conversation, with Maura flashing a huge smile at the reality star as he waved his arms during the conversation.

Their meeting took place a year before Maura, who split from American stuntman boyfriend Bobby Holland Hanton earlier this year, threw her arms around Pete’s neck and kissed him during their recent romantic lunch together.