Mauricio Umansky and Emma Slater have spoken out over speculation that they are ‘dating’, after pictures emerged of their cozy evening out.
The pair are , but have raised eyebrows with fans over their close bond.
The rumormill went into overdrive after they were spotted holding hands this week, with the real estate mogul’s wife, , admitting that she was ‘hurt’ by the images.
Taking to Instagram, Mauricio, 53, was joined by his DWTS partner, 34, to address the claims, insisting that there is nothing romantic between them.
‘We do want to address this story, this whole thing that’s going out and about, about whether or not Emma and I are dating, whether we went out on a date,’ he said in a video on his story.
‘For full clarity, we are not dating.
‘We are really good friends. We’ve been dancing together for six weeks, four hours a day, every single day.’
Emma interjected: ‘Guys it’s intense. You really form a very, very special bond. And I think we’re similar personalities, so we’ve got a super supportive relationship.
‘We’re definitely there for each other. It’s beautiful, that’s a great thing.’
‘We’re really good friends,’ Mauricio added, clarifying the recent photos. ‘We went to a restaurant to go get some sushi right after rehearsal, we were in our rehearsal clothes.
‘Lots of the stories are wrong. And yes it’s a very intense week, a very emotional week, we were talking about that during dinner and when we came out of dinner, we were recapping and I reached out to grab Emma’s hand, and she grabbed my hand.
‘And then we walked to the cars, just recapping and then the paparazzi caught that moment and it’s become a blown-out moment.’
for around 27 years, with the pair sharing daughters Sophia, Alexia and Portia together.
In recent months, the couple have been met with intense speculation over their relationship, and recently shared that they had separated.
Their marriage issues are set to take center stage on the new season of RHOBH, which premiered on Wednesday.
During an appearance on Watch What Happens Live following the episode, Kyle was questioned about the pictures, and admitted: ‘I was taken aback. That was very hard to see. That hurt my feelings.’
When asked by host Andy Cohen about whether she thought something was going on between Mauricio and Emma, she added: ‘I mean… holding hands like that … I just don’t think you hold hands like that with somebody…
‘I don’t know if anything has happened yet but obviously there’s something there.
‘I love him very much and we are amicable but that really did hurt me.’
