McCartney photos fuel romance chatter

NEW YORK, Nov. 7 (UPI) -- Widely published photos of Paul McCartney kissing American Nancy Shevell seem to suggest the British rock 'n' roll icon has found a new lady friend.

McCartney is currently locked in a bitter divorce feud with estranged wife Heather Mills.

Photos published this week -- in Britain and in New York's newspapers Wednesday -- show McCartney and Shevell kissing, walking along a beach and chatting on a sidewalk in the Hamptons, where both Shevell and McCartney own posh homes.

McCartney was also spotted during the weekend clutching a bag as he left an East Hampton lingerie shop.

But one source dismissed the notion that Shevell is McCartney's new girlfriend, as some reports have claimed, telling People: "They have known each other for a while. They are just friends."

Shevell -- a vice president at New England Motor Freight Inc. -- is separated from her husband, has one child.

Mills has made headlines recently for her criticism of the media and McCartney, but does not seem bothered by the thought of McCartney moving on.

"Paul is a free man and can do what he wants," she told "Extra."