Inside Reba McEntire and New Boyfriend Rex Linn’s ‘Magical’ Romance: ‘He’s Her No. 1 Fan’

Reba McEntire‘s new romance with boyfriend Rex Linn is “magical” in more ways than one, an insider exclusively tells Closer Weekly. Not only does the country icon get “butterflies whenever she hears his voice,” but friends of the two already joke that “he’s her No. 1 fan.

“Reba is absolutely smitten by Rex and thinks he’s just fabulous and such a sweetheart,” the source reveals. “She describes him as a breath of fresh air [and] says that Rex is such a caring and understanding man.”

This is because the Cliffhanger alum, 63, has been “a shoulder” for Reba, 65, “to lean on” ever since they went on their first date in January. Before they reunited in Montana in mid-October, the pair were “spending hours chatting on FaceTime” amid coronavirus.

“He’s helped save her from her struggle with anxiety and depression during the pandemic,” the insider dishes, noting she’s even “opened up to him about her devastation” over stepson Brandon Blackstock‘s recent divorce with Kelly Clarkson. “[Rex] is full of good, constructive advice.”

The “Nights the Lights Went Out in Georgia” songstress and the CSI: Miami actor also get along because they “share a ton of similar interests,” the source adds. “They’re both from Oklahoma and have fun conversations about their past and their careers. Rex is a great listener and storyteller.”

Fortunately, dating one of Hollywood’s most iconic singers isn’t intimidating for Rex. “As an actor, Rex understands the downside of fame,” the insider explains. “He’s nowhere [near] as big of a star as Reba, but she likes [that] there is no competition or clash of egos and he loves her music!”

The former Reba actress and the handsome hunk were first linked after they went on a double date with her best friend, Melissa Peterman, and her husband, John Brady, in January. After “[getting] to know each other” over the phone, “it didn’t take long for their friendship to blossom into a romance,” the source shares.

“Reba can’t remember feeling so strongly about a man,” the insider continues. “Reba and Rex have been dating for longer than anyone knows. They’re totally head over heels in love.”

Prior to her relationship with Rex, the Grammy Award winner dated her former beau, Anthony “Skeeter” Lasuzzo, for two years from 2017 to 2019. Although some thought Reba was “jumping into the relationship [with Rex] too quickly,” the Little Rascals star has no regrets about the timeline of her romances.

“She and Skeeter only separated six months before Rex came into her life, but it wasn’t working between them for a while,” the insider notes. “She fell out of love with him. It happens. Rex came into her life at just the right time.”

With Reba and Rex on the fast track to true love, fans can’t help but wonder if there will be wedding bells in her future. Even though the “Fancy” singer “always said she wouldn’t” tie the knot again following her marriages with ex-husbands Narvel Blackstock and Charlie Battles, there’s a chance Rex may actually change his girlfriend’s mind.

“Time will tell,” the source reveals. “One thing [that is] for sure is that Rex is different [from] any man she’s ever met, so there’s always the possibility.”