Kelly Ripa Sweetly Approves Of Ryan Seacrest's New Girlfriend: 'So Fond Of Her'

Kelly Ripa has nothing but admiration for Ryan Seacrest's newest girlfriend Aubrey Paige!

On the Monday, April 4 episode of "Live with Kelly and Ryan," the 51-year-old entertainer recalled her husband Mark Consuelos' intimate birthday party, where the highlight of the event was not the celebrant. 

According to the blonde actress, "the most exciting guest" of the night was none other than her co-star's beautiful girlfriend, who happened to be younger than Seacrest.

On Friday, April 1, the "All My Children" star had the honor of meeting Paige, her longtime friend's special someone, at her husband's 51st  birthday celebration.

Recalling the exciting moment, Seacrest revealed that Ripa teased him for hiding his relationship with the young model, stating that the mother-of-three doubted the existence of his significant other.

According to the media personality, his co-star greeted Paige by saying: "We're all happy you're here and that you exist because we weren't sure there was somebody."

In her defense, the New Jersey native explained that she wasn't the only one suspicious about the "On Air with Ryan Seacrest" host's relationship status.

The "Homemade Millionaire" executive producer said: "We were starting to be like, 'Maybe he doesn't have a special person and maybe we should check in on him more often?' "

Once the shock of meeting the TV producer's girlfriend finally died down, Ripa became enraptured by the model to the point where she threatened to go into seclusion if the lovebirds ever broke up.

"If you two break up, I’m going into seclusion," the six-time Emmy Award winner said, "I am so fond of her." 

While "The Stand-In" actress was worried about the "American Idol" host hurting his new girlfriend, her husband, on the other hand, was concerned about the couple's height difference.

At Consuelos' birthday party, the celebrant pulled Seacrest aside to ask how the Atlanta heartthrob's romance worked given that Paige's height outranked his.

"She's really tall. She's taller than you and much taller in heels. How does that work?'" the "Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve" host recalled. "I was like, 'What are you asking me?' "

Seacrest continued, "He had that dead-serious look. He's like, 'Because Kelly and I talk about that all the time. The height.' ... He was so confused. He was like, 'When you walk together, who's arm goes where?'"

Instead of supporting her husband, Ripa jokingly implied that the "Riverdale" actor had no right to judge the couple's height difference as the length of his arms was incompatible with hers.

As shared by PEOPLE, Seacrest and Paige have kept their relationship away from the spotlight and rarely made public appearances as a couple.

In May 2021, the pair sparked relationship rumors after they were spotted arriving in the Hamptons together. Later in December, the TV personality hinted that he was officially off the market.

Before hosting his annual New Year's Eve show, the 47-year-old left millions guessing his relationship status after telling sources that he might kiss someone special at midnight.

As reported by US Weekly, Seacrest and Paige's sweet love story officially began in June 2021. At the time, an insider told the news outlet that the couple were "very happy together and doing great."

Similar to the media personality's previous relationships, the model was significantly younger than the E! Network star by 23 years.

Before his relationship with Paige, the "American Top 40" host dated professional chef Shayna Taylor, who happened to be 17 years his junior.

The ex-couple was in an on-and-off relationship for 8 years until they finally separated in 2020. Before this, the TV producer dated Julianne Hough from 2010 to 2013.

The former item had a 13-year age difference, making Paige the youngest woman the "E! Live from the Red Carpet" host has dated.

Unlike his intimate life, one of Seacrest's longest relationships has been with his "Live with Kelly and Ryan" co-star. The pair have known each other for over a decade and have a tight bond that transcends the screen.

As for what keeps their platonic affair alive, the 47-year-old cited "trust and respect" as the foundation of their on-air chemistry and longtime friendship.