Paul McCartney Goes Big on Engagement Ring, Little on Prenup

Wonderwall, Monday, May 9, 2011, 10:50am (PDT)

By Kat Giantis

It fills our cold, cynical hearts with joy to see how optimistic Paul McCartney remains about walking down the aisle again after the horror show that was his second marriage to Heather Mills.

And the music legend, 68, appears to be diving headfirst into his newly minted engagement with Nancy Shevell, 51, his American businesswoman squeeze of nearly four years.

While Sir Paul could be forgiven for insisting that Shevell sign a dictionary-thick prenuptial agreement after his $50 million-plus payout to Mills following a bitter divorce battle, the London Daily Mail claims his lawyers have actually created a "simple" one-page document that stipulates his future missus won't make any claim to his kids' trust funds should the marriage fizzle.

Seems McCartney feels comfortable with this arrangement because Shevell, whose family owns a New York transportation business, is loaded, too.

"She really doesn't need his cash," explains an insider.

And if she ever did, she could just hock the engagement ring.

On Friday, Life & Style snapped Shevell flashing a behemoth, round-cut sparkler estimated to be worth a whopping $650,000.

"Nancy's ring is huge! You can tell she was excited to finally be showing it off," says a source. "She was glowing and relaxed and looked like she couldn't be happier. She even gave a thumbs up when asked how her and Paul were doing. Clearly the couple is very happy."

Those in the know believe the relationship is much closer to the one Sir Paul shared with his beloved first wife, Linda, who died of breast cancer in 1998 after three decades of marriage, than his famously contentious union with Mills.

"He and Heather were fighting like cats and dogs even before they got married, while with Nancy it is all very calm, very happy, very chilled out," a source tells the Mail. "It's much more the like the low-key support he had from Linda. She is very quiet like Lin, and has that serenity, too."

And unlike with Mills, Paul's kids fully support his relationship with Shevell, who sported an ensemble from the star's designer daughter, Stella, when she was photographed on Friday.

Stella was reportedly the most vocal opponent of his romance with Heather.

But now, a source tells People, "She's thrilled for her father."

Word is, Paul and Nancy plan to tie the knot in a "small and intimate" ceremony in the backyard of her Hamptons home late this summer with just close friends and family.

"When you spend time with them together it is clear they absolutely dote on each other," gushes a pal. "They couldn't be closer. The relationship is obviously for keeps and they are settled and happy."

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