Dancers Maksim Chmerkovskiy And Karina Smirnoff Talk About Their Romance

Were you as surprised as I was to hear about this engagement between Dancing with the Stars pros Maksim Chmerkovskiy and Karina Smirnoff?  They became engaged when Maksim proposed with a three karat platinum and diamond ring tucked inside a Louis Vuitton bag on New Year's Eve.

'I'm in love and so is she,' Chmerkovskiy gushes in PEOPLE's exclusive interview. 'Everything is beautiful.' " 

The couple said they had known each other for years on the competitive dance circuit but decided four months ago to explore a romantic relationship.  Although they chose not to discuss their relationship publicly until becoming engaged, people who saw them perform guessed something was going on.

'You could see it, the way he caressed her cheek and whispered in her
ear and kissed her on the forehead in between dances,' says fan Heather
O'Connell. 'There was such a tender connection between the two of them,
the way they looked at each other and smiled all night. It was lovely.
That they have that passion on and off the dance floor is awesome.' "

Engaged after four months!  Well, they had known each other for years, and I guess when you know, you know.  Congratulations to the couple!

Photos by Wenn.com