Are Reese and Jake drifting apart?

Reese Witherspoon and Jake Gyllenhaal are discovering that absence does not make the heart grow fonder. The couple, who started dating in early 2007, are struggling to maintain their relationship now that Jake is working 19-hour days in Morocco and London on his next potential blockbuster, Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time.

“This is his first epic, and his mind is on his work,” a pal of Reese’s tells Star. “They talk on the phone and e-mail, but he’s not ‘there.’ Reese is wondering if this is how it’s going to be between them every time he’s out of the country filming.” The relationship hit such a rough patch that Reese, 32, flew to London for a quick rendezvous with Jake, 27, at The Dorchester hotel in mid-September.

“They really needed to reconnect and remember why they were in a relationship in the first place,” says another source. “While there, they even went house hunting for a place because Jake will be using London as his home base until December. Reese doesn’t like the formality of a hotel for her and her two kids.”

Hopefully, celebrating the holidays together “will get them back on the same page,” adds the source.

[From the Star]

It sounds less like Reese and Jake are struggling with long distance and more like there hasn’t been any gossip about them in a long time and Star had to fill up its pages. They’re notorious for printing speculation as fact. Obviously long distance is rough on a relationship. Some find it takes such a toll that it’s worth it for the other person to travel along; however that’s obviously not an option for Reese with two young children at home. It sounds to me like they’re making the best of a bad situation, but it’s probably something they both knew to expect and isn’t really a big deal.

Here’s Reese shoping for shoes at Barney’s in Beverly Hills on September 15th. Images thanks to Fame. Header of Reese and Jake in New York on March 3rd. Images thanks to Splash.

DISCLAIMER: This posting was submitted by a user of the site not from The Insider editorial staff. All users have acknowledged and agreed that the submission of their story and its contents is in compliance with our Terms of Use.