Maksim Chmerkovskiy: I'm Done with Karina

Her relationship with dance partner Aaron Carter has caused tension, sources say

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Photo: Gregory Pace/BEImages

Perhaps the only upside to being eliminated from Dancing with the Stars Tuesday for pro dancer Maksim Chmerkovskiy is that he won’t have to endure any more uncomfortable encounters on set with his ex- fiancée, Karina Smirnoff.

“I feel completely betrayed. I’m done,” Chmerkovskiy tells PEOPLE of his relationship with Smirnoff.

Asked why he feels betrayed, he declined to elaborate, saying only, “I don’t want to get into the specifics. Let’s just leave it at I’m done.”

No Reconciliation

The two dance pros, who got engaged last New Year’s Eve, at one time seemed destined to have a litter of Latin ballroom champs in their future. Even after calling it quits on Sept. 8, pals said the two were likely headed toward a reconciliation – but not anymore.

Sources tell PEOPLE things came to a head when Chmerkovskiy was made aware of the inordinate amount of time Smirnoff, 31, has been spending off the dance floor with her partner, Aaron Carter, 21.

Carter recently declared to the press that he has a crush on DWTS pro Chelsie Hightower – but a source tells PEOPLE that was a smokescreen.

“That’s so funny. Everyone [at the show] knows that’s not true. That’s Karina trying to manipulate things to take attention off her and Aaron,” a source says, noting that Chmerkovskiy “had hoped they could work things out.”

Social Scene

Meanwhile, Chmerkovskiy and Smirnoff will undoubtedly cross paths socially, as was the case one night last week when a group from Dancing went to L.A. hotspot Teddy’s. Smirnoff was there with some friends and other costars.

“Maks showed up with these two smoking hot women,” an onlooker tells PEOPLE. “I mean they were like models – tall, gorgeous. Karina looked like, ‘Oh, my God!’ He sat down and they were just talking. He was cool. He wasn’t putting on a show.”

But his mere presence with the women clearly made Smirnoff uncomfortable. “She just shot out of her seat and left. I would have done the same thing if I were her. I would have run out of the place crying.”

With reporting by LISA INGRASSIA

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