Reba McEntire and Rex Linn Have Different Opinions on Whether Their “Happy’s Place” Characters Should Reunite (Exclusive)

The real-life couple has differing ideas about when their characters, Bobbie and Emmett, should get back together in the series

Warning: Happy’s Place season 3 premiere spoilers ahead.

NEED TO KNOW

• Reba McEntire prefers Bobbie and Emmett’s Happy’s Place romance to remain a will-they-won’t-they storyline
• Rex Linn says he has more fun when Emmett and Bobbie are together onscreen
• Season 3 of the sitcom finds Bobbie dating again while Emmett adjusts to single life after their breakup

Reba McEntire and Rex Linn aren’t necessarily on the same page when it comes to Bobbie and Emmett’s Happy’s Place romance.

Speaking with PEOPLE, the real-life couple revealed they have different opinions on when their characters should reunite following a second-season breakup. Season 3 of the NBC sitcom, which follows McEntire’s Bobbie adjusting to life with a surprise half-sister, kicks off with “Office/Space,” an episode that finds Bobbie and Emmett (Linn) trying to adjust to a new normal.

At the end of last season, Emmett confessed that Bobbie broke his heart when they split. Since then, the two went from being best friends to just talking about the weather. By the end of the episode, they’ve started tackling difficult subjects again, but they’re still a long way from reuniting romantically.

For her part, McEntire, 71, is pleased with the will-they-won’t-they storyline. When asked if she would prefer a speedy reunion, she says, “Will they, won’t they! I love that. I loved it with [Cheers’] Sam and Diane and other sitcoms. It just keeps everybody on their toes and keeps that romance going.”

Linn, however, says he wants their characters back together because he has more fun onscreen when Bobbie and Emmett are a team.

“I‘m not saying this because I’m with Reba, but I’m saying I’ve had more fun being with Bobbie as Emmett than I have without Bobbie. I can say that,” Linn, 69, says. “And I didn’t even really know, when they started putting these two characters together, I honestly didn’t think that they would ever put us together as a couple for a number of reasons, but it happened and it was fun and then all of a sudden, it’s not happening.”

Seeing Bobbie dating new people, including a new third-season character played by Reba alum James Denton, also factors in to Linn’s answer. “So now I get to watch her have other dates and it’s killing me,” he says. “The answer is I’d rather [my character] be with Bobbie than without her, yeah.”

When McEntire heard Linn was eager for their characters to reunite, the country star laughed. “Yeah, of course. We just had Jamie Denton on the show, why wouldn’t he?”

“I also think it’s a fun added layer of the will-they-won’t-they when it’s in real life, you are a couple,” Melissa Peterman (Gabby), 55, says. “I’m guessing that for the viewers at home, that’s another fun layer to think about.”

Happy’s Place also stars Tokala Black Elk, Belissa Escobedo and Pablo Castelblanco. In the third season, the crew at the titular tavern will continue to face new work challenges and romantic twists. Peterman promises her character will be dealing with “mama drama” thanks to returning guest star Jane Lynch reprising her role as Gabby’s mom, while Bobbie is exploring the dating scene. That leaves Emmett readjusting to the single life on his own.

“Emmett is trying to find a new path,” Linn says. “He’s had a slight, what seems to be a, well, it’s not really a slight breakup with Bobbie. So he’s kind of on his own now and back to being a loner, but also trying to figure out better ways to carry on his life without her, and he gets into some fun.”

New episodes of Happy’s Place season 3 premiere Fridays at 8 p.m. ET on NBC and stream the next day on Peacock.