• Rihanna, cruising through West Hollywood with

beau Chris Brown. The musical couple ran errands together

- and looked relaxed and at ease. (See photos of Rihanna and Chris Brown together - and other stars - at the BET Awards.)

• Hilary Duff, attending a Los Angeles Film

Festival afterparty at the W Hotel with hockey player boyfriend Mike Comrie - and putting their affection on display.”They were total

lovebirds,” an onlooker told us. From the VIP section to a table on the

dancefloor and, finally, to the comfort of the couch, the twosome cozied up

to each other all night - and were among the last to leave the bash.

• Hilary Swank and live-in agent-boyfriend John Campisi, sharing a Power Pilates session together at Equinox in Santa

Monica. The actress - sporting a super short do - and her beau

worked out intensely, but were still playful. The

two left the studio hand-in-hand, an onlooker says, giggling on

their way out.

• Private Practice’s Kate Walsh,

beating the heat over a relaxed lunch of octopus salad with husband Alex Young at Fred Segal Mauro Café in Los Angeles.

• Other couples dining at Mauro Café recently: Nicky Hilton, holding hands with David Katzenberg while waiting for

their food to arrive. The handbag designer dined on chicken salad and spaghetti with

pink sauce. And Emmy Rossum shared bites of her boyfriend Justin Siegel’s pasta dish.

• Robert Downey Jr., nuzzling wife Susan’s neck and

giving her a series of quick pecks while out for dinner at West Hollywood’s

Chateau Marmont. The actor dined with seven other people - and spread

his affection around. According to an onlooker, he hugged the entire table

on his way out.

• By REAGAN ALEXANDER, JENNIFER GARCIA and MAUREEN

HARRINGTON

Celebrity Hot Spots.

Friday’s Caught in the Act >

OMG! Gossip Girl leads the pack for this year’s Teen Choice Awards with a whopping 14 nominations.

Among the “choice” nods for the hit CW series: TV show drama and TV breakout show. While cast members Chace Crawford and Penn Badgley are vying for the title of TV actor drama, actress Blake Lively is up for female hottie, the FOX network announced Tuesday.

Reigning awards show champ Justin Timberlake has already won a record 21 surfboards since 1999, and earned three more nominations this year.

The Teen Choice Awards will air Aug. 4 on FOX. Fans ages 13-19 can vote for their fave nominees at www.TeenChoiceAwards.com.

Rihanna is usually mum about her relationship with Chris Brown, but during a recent radio interview the songstress coyly hinted at her connection with the “Take You Down” singer.

When asked directly how her relationship with Brown, 19, is going during a recent visit to New York’s Power 105.1’s The Ed Lover Show, Rihanna, 20, replied: “We are great actually. We have been friends for three years now.”

Not satisfied with the friendship remark, Lover further pressed Rihanna who is touring with Kanye West, on the topic. “Friends? But there are pictures of you kissy kiss,” he said, which prompted Rihanna to respond: “We are very good friends.”

The pair, who recently spent time together in New York City, have made headlines with their intimate European and Caribbean outings. But Rihanna understands privacy is hard to come by.

“People always want to know what it is and what it isn’t. People think they know. They try to guess,” Rihanna said. “Sometimes you just need your privacy. But it comes with the territory. There’s no privacy when you are out in the public.”

The love fest rolls on for Rihanna and Chris Brown, who spent Wednesday night taking in a Kanye West show at Spotlight Live, a Times Square restaurant and karaoke bar.

A day after Rihanna helped Brown celebrate his 19th birthday at a Manhattan club, the pair got affectionate in plain view of other concertgoers.

Brown draped his arm around Rihanna, 20, as the two danced, clapped and sang along to the short concert. As West left the stage, Rihanna leaned over and planted a big kiss on Brown. The couple then retreated to the back of the restaurant, where they hung out with friends.

Although they’ve been spotted getting cozy from Europe to the Caribbean - including during a romantic vacation in Jamaica in February - Brown and Rihanna have never publicly confirmed their relationship.

Earlier this month, Rihanna shared the most information yet when she told Elle Magazine that she and Brown had become “very close.”

• Reporting by ANDREA DESIMONE

Still living down persistent rumors that she and Chris Brown are an item, Rihanna insists, “We are best friends, honestly, like brother and sister.”

Speaking to MTV News at Saturday’s Kids’ Choice Awards, the Girls Gone Bad singer and philanthropist, 20, said, “I won’t say that we’re just friends - me and Chris are really best, best friends.

“We both started our careers around the same time. He is one of the only people in the industry … I trust and hang out with all the time.”

And just so there’s no question, she added, “If he was a boyfriend, I would say that.”

Brown joined in, too, saying: “They keep asking me, ‘What’s the deal?’ I’m like, ‘There’s no deal. No deal.’ We’re just friends.”

As it is, Brown doesn’t seem ready to settle down with that special someone. Asked what he does to help thwart speculation about his personal life, the “Run It!” singer, 18, replied: “Be yourself - and see as many girls as possible!”
- Stephen M. Silverman