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KATIE HOLMES HAS not traditionally been one for public displays of affection. When she started dating Tom Cruise in 2005, she kept a dignified silence as he proclaimed his love to the world by bouncing on Oprah Winfrey’s sofa. After their 2012 divorce, she was linked to Jamie Foxx for several years, but declined to confirm a relationship until last spring. And yet, in recent weeks, the actor has swept aside the girl-next-door image that has followed her since her Dawson’s Creek days, embracing an affectionately relaxed approach to a new love. This despite the fact that her romance has been dogged by whispered claims of a jilted ex.
Rumours of the new relationship began in September, when Katie, 41, was spotted dining with Emilio Vitolo Jr, 33. A chef at his father’s restaurant, Emilio’s Ballato (a favourite of New York’s A-list), he has long moved in famous circles and is an aspiring actor. Since then, the pair have been photographed together several times, kissing on restaurant terraces or in the street with little concern for the lingering paparazzi. Katie’s fans are thrilled to see her happy after a roller-coaster few years, but there may be a casualty in the love story: Emilio’s ex-fiancée Rachel Emmons.
Following the early sightings of Katie with Emilio, reports circulated that he had been engaged to Rachel until very recently. In fact, her public Instagram account showed them together, smiling, an engagement ring on her finger as recently as 27 July – just 35 days before the first paparazzi shots of Katie and Emilio emerged. Rachel deleted the images last week. The date of their break-up is disputed: friends of Rachel have said that she was ‘blindsided’ to see pictures of her fiancé kissing someone else. Sources close to Emilio, however, claim that their relationship had reached a natural close. Whatever the truth, Katie is said to be taking it in her stride.
‘Katie’s got a spring in her step and, despite this drama, she couldn’t be happier,’ a source says. ‘As awkward as that scenario is, it doesn’t change the fact Katie’s having a wonderful time. She’s only seeing the best in Emilio and says he’s like a breath of fresh air.’
It’s early days but Katie, the source adds, ‘is proud of herself for having the courage and spontaneity to go public after years of closely guarding her privacy. It’s the first time in many years that something has felt so right, so energising and outright joyful.’ Nevertheless, the source adds that Emilio is yet to meet Suri, Katie’s daughter with Tom.
Indeed, while meeting Emilio is partly responsible for Katie’s new lease of life, there is more to her new energy than romance. Suri is now 14, enabling Katie to find new balance as a working mother. ‘It seems like yesterday that Suri was a little girl being photographed hand in hand with her mum,’ says an insider. ‘They were joined at the hip and devoted to each other. They still are – there is so much love between them – but Suri is a teenager: she’s finding herself, is enjoying her own space as she approaches adulthood and thinks of college and her future.’ Katie’s priority, the source adds, ‘has always been, and will always be, Suri. But now she feels more comfortable in letting her run errands and go around the city without her, to leave her at home while she goes on dates or sees friends. It’s made a huge change in Katie’s social life.’