Karina Smirnoff: Emmy Dance With Maksim Won't Be Awkward

Karina Smirnoff says her performance with ex fiance Maksim Chmerkovskiy at this Sunday's Emmy Awards won't be awkward.

"We were friends before anything else," Smirnoff told Us at the 5th Annual Pink Party in Santa Monica Saturday. "We have been friends for 14 years, which is probably ridiculously long in any relationship, so it's all good."

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Smirnoff -- who split from Chmerkovskiy earlier this month --  says hitting the stage at the Emmys is "honestly a dream come true, and I think we are both in awe and trying to do as much as possible for it to be a wonderful performance."

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What to expect from from their dance?

"It's going to be very sexy and very hot and exciting," teases Smirnoff, who will also appear in Dancing With the Stars alongside Chmerkovskiy (the show premieres Sept. 21 on ABC).

Smirnoff also tells Us fans shouldn't necessarily rule out a romantic reunion with Chmerkovskiy.

"It's life. You don't know," admitted the dancer, who got engaged to Chmerkovskiy on New Year's Eve 2008 -- about six months after splitting from Mario Lopez.