Giovanni Pernice stays close to ‘secret girlfriend’ after THAT Debbie McGee kiss
GIOVANNI PERNICE has been spending a lot of time with his “secret girlfriend” despite currently dancing with Debbie McGee on the Strictly Come Dancing tour.
Gemma Atkinson prepares for Strictly tour with Debbie McGee
Debbie's professional partner is allegedly dating Luba Mushtuk who is also part of the live shows.
And yesterday, Giovanni, 27, and the Latin dance champion appeared very close as they stepped out in Leeds.
The pair seemed in good spirits as they wrapped up warm and headed out for another day of rehearsals with their Strictly co-stars.
But as they left the hotel, Debbie McGee was seen walking by herself behind Giovanni and Luba.
Luba is a dancer and choreographer on Strictly Come Dancing and she even hit the dance floor with the Italian hunk on the show last year.
The two professionals have performed together on numerous occasions over the years and are set to embark on a nation-wide tour titled Born To Win in April.
Their outing comes following claims Luba felt “uncomfortable” with Giovanni and Debbie’s close bond on the series as she could see how much he "cares" for her.
“Luba and Giovanni are together. But she doesn’t like Debbie because of their bond — she feels how much Gio cares for her,” a source told The Sun.
The insider added Luba wanted their relationship to be public and had aspirations to feature on the show as a professional as well.
The source continued: “It’s also upsetting as she would like their romance to be out in the open. Luba is very keen to be on the show one day.
“She assists with choreography. But that means she has to spend a lot of time watching Giovanni rehearse with Debbie which can be uncomfortable for her.”
However, a spokesperson for Giovanni told Express.co.uk last year: "Luba is his professional dance partner who stars opposite him in his solo tour, and that they are just friends."
Just last week, Debbie and Giovanni were spotted enjoying a tender moment as they headed to practice in Birmingham.
While walking to rehearsals, Debbie embraced her dance partner by pulling him closer for a kiss.
Giovanni placed his arm around the former magician assistant’s shoulders as he relished the sweet moment.
And it seems they are enjoying being back in each other's company as yesterday, Debbie, 59, admitted she was having an "amazing" time on the Strictly tour.