The pair, who have both expressed a love for the Big Apple, are said to be planning a permanent move there after Jen splashed out on a $15 million penthouse with spectacular city views – and more than enough room to raise a family.

Walking hand-in-hand, the outing seemed just the tonic for Jen, who made a desperate dash to the bedside of her mum Nancy Dow, 75, after she reportedly suffered a stroke in LA last week.

Struggling with tears, Jen, 42, found great comfort in having Justin by her side. ‘Justin has been very supportive and there with her all the way,’ a source close to the actress told Us Weekly. ‘It’s a very hard time for her right now.’

Justin reportedly waited in the hospital corridor during Jen’s visit – apparently sensitive to the star’s fragile relationship with her mum. They were estranged for more than 10 years after Nancy gave a TV interview about their relationship at the height of Friends mania in 1996 and wrote a tell-all book in 1999.

The superstar actress refused to invite her mum to her wedding to Brad Pitt in 2000 – a move she described as a ‘tortuous decision’.

‘I still can’t believe I got married and my mother has never met this person I married,’ she said at the time. But the relationship has defrosted of late, with Jen saying in 2009 they were on speaking terms.

Now, with Jen in love and reportedly looking forward to marriage, everyone is hoping her mum will finally get a chance to see her walk down the aisle.