Robert’s cosy secret meet-up with Netflix star

Robert Irwin has sparked further dating rumours after he was spotted having a private meet-up with an American actress.

Just before taking out the title on US Dancing With the Stars on Wednesday, the Aussie Wildlife Warrior, 21, was pictured privately hanging out with Xochitl Gomez ahead of the big finale.

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In the photos, 19-year-old Gomez – who rose to fame in Netflix series The Baby-Sitters Club – gifted Irwin a massive bouquet of flowers before giving him an affectionate hug. The pair were then seen laughing and chatting during their exchange.

A source told Page Six that Gomez also “spent some time backstage” with members of Irwin’s family.

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Irwin first sparked romance rumours earlier this month when he performed an intimate dance with Gomez, who won the dance competition series two years ago with Val Chmerkovskiy.

For the show’s 20th anniversary celebration episode, the pair partnered up on the dance floor where their chemistry was undeniable.

“We had the best time,” he told TMZ at the time. “That dance was so much fun.”

This isn’t the first time Irwin has been romantically linked with a star affiliated with DWTS. One month before his private powwow with Gomez, he was seen getting cosy with troupe dancer – a stunning rising star named Hailey Bills, 19, who performs on the show as a background dancer.

According to reports by celebrity gossip account Deux Moi, Irwin and Bills became close this season, with the pair reportedly inseparable both on set and off.

“Everyone’s favourite DWTS bachelor has paused his search for his American dream girl to have some play time beyond the ballroom,” read a Deux Moi email shared on Instagram last month.

“My sources tell me he’s been spotted a few times getting cosy with a brunette … The same one he follows around on set. She’s the only troupe member he follows on Instagram.”

Irwin’s latest romantic encounter with Gomez comes after he admitted to the New York Times that being in the public eye has made his dating life difficult at times.

“Holy moly, that’s so challenging to navigate,” he told the masthead in an interview last week, in which he said of dating, “anything you do will be on TikTok the next day”.

But the popular personality said that the constant speculation about his private life doesn’t stop him for living fully.

“I never change what I say, what I do, who I am one bit, wherever I am,” he explained, adding that he has “no persona to hide behind”.

“It’s just me, and I stand by who I am.”

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