Meet Cosmo's cover model search winner: Adair Howell proved to have what it takes to be on Cosmo's cover--a gorgeous face, a rockin' bod, and confidence galore. Read on to find out how she snagged this coveted honor.

* We know the suspense was killing you. That's why we're thrilled to finally reveal the winner of Cosmo's Cover Model Search--18-year-old Adair Howell.

After announcing the search in our January issue, we were flooded with thousands of applicants. Adair was among them, and her striking good looks and knockout figure immediately caught our attention. She had no trouble landing a spot as one of our 25 semifinalists. Then you, our dedicated readers, voted her into our find four, featured in the July issue. In the Max Mara stunning red dress she wore in that photo, it was obvious she possessed that irresistible Cosmo cover-girl combo of classic beauty and bring-them-to-their-knees sexiness. Tens of thousands of readers voted on the finalists, and although initially it was a tight race, Adair soon pulled ahead.

Readers couldn't stop singing her praises. You told us you loved her natural look, fabulous body, and gorgeous red hair. But it goes beyond that. Adair has the magic quality required of all of our cover girls: killer confidence. "The Cosmo cover look is not just about being sexy," explains editor-in-chief Kate White. "It's about being able to convey an attitude in a photograph that says I own this room."

Now sit back and hear how this average chick (with far-from-average looks) made the mammoth leap from college freshman to a Cosmo cover girl in a few short months.

A Model Is Born

Judging from these pictures, it's tough to imagine Adair as a typical teenager from Atlanta. But the fact is, until recently, her life was pretty normal. She's lived with her dad, Peter, a former tennis pro turned Internet salesman, and her two younger sisters, Sophie, 16, and Olga, 13, since her parents split three years ago. (Her mother, Olga, a landscape architect, lives nearby.) Growing up, she was always "very pretty and the tallest girl in her class," says Peter of his 5-foot-11-inch daughter. "But she was never a ham in front of the camera or dying to be the center of attention in any situation."

Still, plenty of people took notice of Adair's head-turning beauty. "Everyone was always saying she should model," remembers her dad. And Adair's mother, who did some modeling as a teen, encouraged her daughter to try it. "She thought it would fun and a good way for me to make some extra spending money, so I gave it a shot," explains Adair in her charming Southern accent. In high school, she did some local catwalking in Atlanta and began entering modeling contests. And though she enjoyed her time on the runway, this honor-roll student and all-state volleyball player remained focused on school and sports. That is, until she picked up the January issue of Cosmo.