Aaron Carter News

Figuring that what happens in Las Vegas does not always have to stay in Vegas, Aaron Carter popped the question Sunday night to girlfriend Kari Ann Peniche, sources told E! Online Monday.

The 18-year-old 2 Good 2 B True singer had apparently planned to escort his paramour straight over to the nearest Sin City wedding chapel, but instead of pulling a Britney he opted for an onstage proposal in front of 200 people during a performance of the Playboy Hollywood Comedy Tour. The duo, who hunkered down at the Palms Casino Resort during their stay in Vegas, said that they plan to wed sometime in the next six months.

"I'm very excited about it," Peniche told People magazine. "Aaron is the most genuine person I know. He's kind, loving, and I love him so much."

Peniche, 22, who says on her MySpace.com page that "intelligence is most important in a boyfriend/girlfriend," was crowned Miss United States Teen in 2003 but was later stripped of the title (no pun intended) after posing nude in Playboy's November 2004 issue. (Baring almost-all for Howard Stern's radio show afterward probably didn't help her crown cause, either.)

While her social networking site is in desperate need of an update--it currently lists her as "single"--Peniche knows what she wants in a man.

"You like to be able to talk about everything that is on your mind, and if your partner can't keep up, well, you know," the San Diego native said. "You are very attracted to someone who can challenge you, and make you see things in a whole new way."

And Carter, fully recovered from a minor surfing accident that sidelined him last month, seems pretty adept at posing brainteasers. When asked about his son's pending nuptials, Bob Carter told E! Online senior editor Marc Malkin, "I heard he got married, then I heard he only got engaged. I don't have a clue." Papa Carter also said that the couple "just started dating. Even my daughters don't know what's going on."

Aaron's mom, Jane Carter, also weighed in on the engagement, although her lack of knowledge regarding how the whole thing went down rivaled her ex-husband's.

"I think that if that is what makes him happy, then OK," she told Malin. "I never listened to my parents at that age, so why would I put myself in the position of giving an opinion that would alienate my son and the progress we have made in healing from the divorce.

"I simply wish him the best in anything he does. My love for all my children is unconditional. I want him to be happy. If this girl makes him happy, then it's all good."

Aside from wedding planning, the groom-to-be will soon be making the reality TV scene with his siblings. House Of Carters, featuring Aaron, older brother Nick, twin sister Angel, and sisters Bobbie Jean and Leslie, premieres Oct. 2 on E! Entertainment Television. (E! and E! Online are divisions of E! Networks.)