OK! Exclusive: The Truth About Brit's New Guy

Don't believe those stories you may have read elsewhere that Britney Spears has a new boyfriend in waiter Michael Marchand, who was photographed exiting restaurant Mirabelle with the pop star last week.

"Michael Marchand isn't a new one-time fling," explains Brit's closest friend to OK!. "He isn't a new boyfriend — he isn't even a friend... And he did not go to Las Vegas with her!"

So how did Brit, who celebrates her 26th birthday next Monday, end up being photographed with Michael? "The only connection she has with him is that she's eaten in Mirabelle, where he works," claims the friend.

However, the friend confesses, Michael did indeed attempt to make contact with the divorced mother of two. During one of their dinners at Mirabelle, Brit's ever-present pal Sam Lutfi left his cell phone on the table. Michael retrieved the mislaid mobile and drove out to The Summit, Britney's gated community looking down on Beverly Hills. "Michael was not allowed through the gates," Brit's friend reveals. "He has never seen Britney outside the restaurant."

In other Brit news, lawyers for the singer and her ex-hubby are scheduled to meet before the judge Monday for the latest round of legal wrestling over the former couple's two young boys, Sean Preston, 2, and 1-year-old Jayden James. OK! will be on the scene to bring you updates as they happen.