A young model whose lover is 27 years her senior claims he is not her sugar daddy.
Mason Reese, 54, and Sarah Russi, 26, say they are used to getting stares when they go out in public.
But the couple claim money has nothing to do with their relationship, which is based around "common interests", mutual respect and a similar sense of humour.
Mason, from New York, said: “Truth of the matter is I don’t see myself as being in her league, so when I look at a beautiful young 26-years-old adult model I don’t think, ‘oh she is gonna be in love with me’.
“When she first expressed interest in actually being in a relationship with me I think I was just shocked as anybody.
“A lot of people have come out and been like, ‘really you are with that dude, like why? Is it for the money? Is it because he is your sugar daddy?’”
Although Sarah has previously worked as a sugar baby, she maintains that her arrangement with Mason, who is a former child actor, is strictly personal.
She said: “The idea of being a sugar baby is it can be like fun sometimes, like getting paid $300 for dinners, but ever since I started talking to Mason I just decided that I don’t want that anymore. I feel like I’m happy to be in a relationship with him.
“I am really happy with Mason . I don’t need to be with him for his money.”
Mason added: “Sarah’s never asked me for a penny.
“She’s bought me beautiful gifts and spent time with me and money on me so I don’t feel that’s the basis of our relationship at all.”
He added: “The last time I dated someone 26 is probably when I was 28. My entire life most of the women that I have had relationships with have been my age or even maybe slightly older than myself so this is a new one for me.”
T he couple, who have been dating for seven months, met at the Chiller Theatre Expo in New Jersey; although they had already been in touch with one another on Facebook .
Sarah said: “I think the relationship progressed so quickly because we just hit it off right away.”
Mason added: “When you meet somebody and you end up talking for three hours effortlessly - no pauses, no breaks, no uncomfortable moments of real silence - that’s kind of unusual and I think she felt that way as well.
“Obviously we are lovers but at the same time we are also good friends. I think we really enjoy being around each other. I think we make each other laugh a lot and we do have a lot of common interests.
“It doesn’t matter how old she is, or where she’s from or anything else.”