The WB may be all about its teen and twentysomething stars, but it looks like the fortysomething star of the Friday-night comedy “Reba” might be getting a little lovin’ in her life.

In “Couples Therapy,” airing Friday, Reba (Reba McEntire) confronts her ex-husband’s therapist, Dr. Joe Baker (guest star Patrick Duffy), when she finds out he holds her primarily responsible for problems in her ex’s current marriage. It’s the first of two appearances for Duffy, the star of both “Dallas” and the comedy “Step by Step,” and there’s a chance that Baker and Reba could be more than just acquaintances.

“Yes, I’m going to be the man in Reba’s life,” Duffy says, “so this should be very interesting. We don’t know where it’s going, but I’m honored to be chosen for the redhead.

“Apparently, as you can imagine, it was a tough choice for them. I hadn’t known the whole premise of the show until I was approached, but it started with her already separated from her husband. So there has never been a person in her life. You can’t just throw in the actor of the week. It’s hard to say this without sounding like I’m tooting my own horn, but I’m not – they needed somebody like Bobby Ewing to be worthy of Reba.”

The show has hinted that there may be lingering feelings between Reba and her ex, Brock (Christopher Rich).

“That hint is not unfounded,” Duffy says. “We don’t know where this relationship is going, so maybe a love interest for her will send her back to her husband. I could teach her that there are two levels of love, and she had the best one the first time and should go back. I’m just talking off the top of my head.”

After several seasons in the “90s of “Step by Step,” in which he starred with former “Three’s Company” star Suzanne Somers, Duffy is no stranger to the sitcom format.

“It’s not my first day at the parade,” he says. “I’m like the old pony in the show there. I must say, though, it felt so good to be in that format. I had missed doing half-hour. I did 15 years of one-hours in a row, without a break, then landed in a half-hour and thought I’d landed in the lap of heaven.”

Prior to “Dallas,” which launched in 1978 and ran 13 seasons, Duffy starred in “The Man From Atlantis,” which began in 1977.

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