Gwyneth Paltrow Confirms: I Helped Set Up Jake and Taylor!

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Saturday – December 18, 2010 – 6:40pm

Taylor Swift and Jake Gyllenhaal might owe Gwyneth Paltrow a thank-you: if it weren't for her, their relationship may have fizzled out sooner than it started.

As Us Weekly was the first to report, Paltrow, 38, hosted a private dinner party for the pair during Swift and Gyllenhaal's secretive trip to London on November 13.

VIDEO: More details on Gwyneth's dinner with Jake and Taylor

"Jake and Taylor were driven from the Dorchester hotel to Gwyneth and Chris Martin's house in Primrose Hill for dinner," an insider told Us. "Gwyneth seems to have played a role in their relationship."

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When USA Today asked Paltrow about the intimate gathering with Gyllenhaal, 30, and Swift, 21, the Country Strong actress initially tried to play coy.

"Where is this coming from?" she asked, adding that she's "scared to say" much about the couple's blossoming romance.

"It's so weird. I wonder how people find out these things. It was a while ago, so I don't know why it would come out today," Paltrow said. "I've just known Jake for a long time and he's a great guy, and Chris has a friendship with Taylor."

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Paltrow's matchmaking skills apparently paid off: one week after their trip, Swift scheduled a last-minute trip to Brooklyn to spend Thanksgiving with Gyllenhaal at his sister Maggie's home.

"They were so happy and content," an eyewitness told Us of the couple. "They seemed very comfortable together."

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Which Ex Will Taylor Swift Sing About at the CMA Awards?

Credit: Bryan Bedder/WireImage for Vogue

Monday – November 08, 2010 – 5:14pm

Taylor Lautner will make an appearance the Country Music Association Awards in Nashville on Wednesday...via song, that is.

PHOTOS: How Taylor's style has changed

His ex, Taylor Swift, is set to sing about the 18-year-old Twilight star when she performs her latest single, "Back to December," UsMagazine.com can exclusively confirm.

In the track, Swift, 20, sings that she wishes "I'd realized what I had when you were mine. I go back to December, turn around and make it all right."

VIDEO: See which MTV star asked Taylor on a date

"She rehearsed last night and sounded great. It's a very emotional performance -- just her sitting at the piano, strings playing," a source tells Us. "It'll definitely be a 'moment' in the show."

PHOTOS: Hollywood's latest odd couples

Hopefully Swift's current beau Jake Gyllenhaal remembers to set his TiVo: an insider tells Us that the actor, 29, hasn't attended rehearsals and probably "won't be here for the CMAs."

The Country Music Association Awards air Nov. 10 at 8 p.m. (EST) on ABC.

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Taylor Swift, Jake Gyllenhaal Have Flirty Ice Cream Date

Coast-to-coast cuddlefests!

After flirty dates in and around NYC on Oct. 23 and 24, Taylor Swift and Jake Gyllenhaal shared a happy Halloween weekend in California.

First, they hit the pool at the Post Ranch in Big Sur.

PHOTOS: Hollywood's latest odd couples

"Taylor laughed at everything Jake said," a witness tells the new Us Weekly. "At one point, she measured herself against Jake on her tiptoes." (An observer adds that Gyllenhaal "held her hand.")

Then, late on Monday, Swift, 20, and Gyllenhaal, 29, stopped for an ice cream break at McConnell's, 200 miles south in Santa Barbara.

"They looked at all the flavors and couldn't decide, so they asked the counter girls for help," a staffer says of the duo, who were "happy" and "friendly."

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Swift -- whose new album Speak Now sold 1 million copies in its first week -- chatted up a worker in the back. "Taylor was very interested in what I was doing in the back making ice cream and said, 'Wow, you guys are legit!'" the scoop girl added.

Their ice cream picks, which Gyllenhaal paid for: Swiss chocolate chip for him, yogurt with rainbow sprinkles for her.

PHOTOS: Taylor's style evolution

After savoring their treats inside McConnell's for about 20 minutes, the pair split. When they were approached by excited college-age fans in the parking lot, they "happily obliged" for photos.

Adds the staffer: "They smiled a ton!"

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