James Argent is believed to have won the hearts of his girlfriend's family after joining them on a trip to Italy.
The former The Only Way Is Essex star, 34, has kept his romance with Stella Turian, 18, relatively low-key but it appears their relationship is stepping up a notch.
James is currently holidaying in the Italian town of Positano on the luxurious Amalfi Coast, which is known for its celebrity sun soakers and picturesque scenery.
But, it appears the trip had a much deeper meaning after Stella introduced the reality star to her family who have given James their seal of approval.
Speaking to the Daily Mail, a source said: "James has totally fallen for Stella and she adores him too.
"That's why she was very keen for him to meet her family and go official with how she feels.
"James and Stella both lead busy lives, but they are keen to spend as much time as possible with one another and are planning a holiday, probably to Dubai, before the end of the year."
His meeting with Stella's nearest and dearest comes after they enjoyed a trip to Marbella together, where James often treats holiday goers to a performance.
Stella had been supporting her beau who was performing at Olivia's La Cala restaurant with his band.
It's believed the loved-up couple first met in Mykonos where he was attending the wedding of a friend, where it was "love at first sight".
Despite some raising their eyebrows over the 16-year age gap between James and Stella, it doesn't seem to be affecting the couple, with a source telling Heat magazine that they are "in love" and are spending as much time together as possible.
They added that their age "hasn't played a part in their romance so far"
Arg and Stella have also been defended by Peter Andre who is 16 years older than his wife, Emily.
Peter said: "Age is a different thing to different people, on paper things can look a certain way but I think it depends how you are with the person.
"I don't think I've ever felt an age gap between us and when you see us together you wouldn't feel there is."
Despite often being seen smooching one another, James has remained coy about their relationship, during an appearance on GB News in July, he said: "There [is] someone I've met recently who's lovely, but she lives abroad.
"We're gonna carry on talking and hopefully we might see each other [later this year]."
Do you have a story to sell? Get in touch with us at webcelebs@mirror.co.uk or call us direct 0207 29 33033.
