Well him telling her to keep her distance sounds plausible. He probably didn't want the paps to harass the girl. Unless it's true which would make him an absolute douche, which I doubt.
To me the most plausible reason like you said indeed they are walking apart is probably because he doesn't want to create a story. And yet by trying to not create a story he created a much bigger story than he would have if perhaps he had simply ignored them.