‘It’s definitely more than friends’: TOWIE’s James Argent admits he loves Gemma Collins

James ‘Arg’ Argent has finally admitted he loves Gemma Collins.

The reality TV pair have had a rocky romance over the years from Collins vowing to never let him ‘have her candy’ before confessing her love for him years later over Instagram.

But after years of treating their relationship as a “bit of a joke” Argent has finally admitted they are “definitely more than friends”.

Speaking on Loose Women he said: “I’ll be honest with you girls, I’m sure you’re well aware, me and Gemma have been spending a lot of time together recently.

“In the past I kind of always put Gemma second. I always treated us two as a bit of a laugh, a bit of a joke and stuff.”

He continued: “The last few months have gone by and I’ve kind of realised, do you know what? I do have some really strong feelings for her. When I’m not with her I miss her a lot. When I am with her we’re constantly laughing and getting on. I clearly fancy her. We’ve had many kisses and cuddles over the years. It’s definitely more than friends.”

Nadia Sawalha asked: “So do your hold her face and tell her you’re in love with her?”

Argent replied: “Yes I do.”

Argent – who is the longest standing TOWIE cast member – said he was in “denial” until the last few months when he realised his feelings for Collins.

He said: “Obviously I’ve always had a soft spot for Gemma. But I kind of thought that maybe we were purely mates that had a bit of fun, not too serious. It honestly hasn’t been until the last few months that things have changed.”

Although they aren’t officially a couple and have made no plans to tie the knot, he did ask Collins to dinner on live TV.

He said: “Well there’s no wedding date set as of yet. Gemma I know you’re in bed and you haven’t been well this week. I’ve been thinking long and hard and it would mean the world with me if you’d have a curry with me tonight.”

Collins and Argent started dating after he split from Lydia Bright. Collins recently enjoyed a date with a man named Lawrence on Celebs Go Dating, before later telling fans they hadn’t worked out and that she had set him up on a date with another woman.