April 16, 2008

With less than a week to go before the launch of Ashlee Simpson's new album and clothing line, she's hit publicity overload thanks to the mystery of whether or not there's a flat-haired, eyeliner-slathered bun baking in her oven.

While Fall Out Boy fiancé Pete Wentz, 28, has adamantly denied the reports (he huffed to MTV News, "There is a witch hunt for people to be pregnant whenever they get engaged in Hollywood ... I mean really, this is crazy"), Ashlee, 23, is bobbing and weaving around the baby talk.

During an appearance Tuesday on MTV's "TRL," she played a coy game of "guess what's in my uterus" over the purported stork visit.

"I just think it's an inappropriate question to ask any woman," she dodged. "For me, that's something that I didn't ever want to respond to, because I think it's an inappropriate question."

Continued the pert-nosed, repetition-prone starlet, "Some things, you want to keep personal, and I think that when people deny [pregnancy reports], it's probably because it's something they want to keep personal."

Ashlee Simpson is spotted in New York on April 15

But those pesky unnamed sources appear to have a different idea of what's personal. On the heels of insiders spilling to Us and OK! about Ashlee's alleged incubation of a Pete-spawned bundle of joy comes confirmation from that most celebrity-friendly weekly, People.

A "source close to her family" informs the magazine that she is indeed knocked up and plans to become Mrs. Wentz next month at a pal's house in La Jolla, Calif., located north of San Diego.

Time, as they say, will tell.

Ashlee kept her cakehole closed about their knot-tying plans on "TRL," although she did comment on the rock she received from her betrothed, who reportedly got down on one knee after asking her dad for permission.

"That's all so sacred, I need to keep that to myself," she demurred of the wedding and question-popping details, before adding, "But he did a great job at picking out the ring."

(Her finger remains bare because the sparkler is being resized.)

When asked why they decided to share their "sacred" news with the world via a Web site posting, Simpson explained, "It was important for us. There was a story coming out and people ... always write untrue things, and we wanted to let our fans know from us."

Speaking of those stories people always write, OK! believes big sister Jessica is a mite put out by Ashlee's marriage and possible baby carriage plans.

"Jessica never imagined that her tomboy younger sister would have a baby first," asserts a "Simpson family" snitch. "It would be very hard for her not to be jealous."

According to the mag, the Nick Lachey-ditching, Tony Romo-dating starlet "has longed for a baby for years."

"Jessica couldn't be happier for her sister but still can't help feeling jealous," says the insider. "She'd love to be planning a wedding with a baby on the way."

Next: Couples News: Mariah Enjoying Nick at Night?