From the NY Post: BRUCE Springsteen is born to run – from marriage.

Several sources have told The Post that the superstar who wrote “Hungry Heart” and his second wife of almost 20 years, Patti Scialfa, are on the rocks and virtually living separate lives.

Part of the problem seems to be a friendship Springsteen developed with a stunning 9/11 widow The Boss is said to have met when he organized the “America: A Tribute to Heroes” telethon.

“They’re separated, but everyone has been sworn to secrecy,” one pal of the couple told The Post’s Jeane MacIntosh. “We’re not supposed to talk about it.”

Springsteen and the woman – who is a redhead, just like Scialfa – have been spotted several times at the Beacon Hill Beach Club in Monmouth, N.J., said one local source. The two have also been spotted at the Stone Pony, the Asbury Park watering hole from Springsteen’s Glory Days.

The widow is said to be a member of the swank Atlantic Club gym in Red Bank. Her children attend the exclusive Ranney School in Tinton Falls with Springsteen’s kids.

But a Bruce pal said, “He’s just a really big flirt. There’s nothing going on.” Another friend said, “Bruce and Patti are very much partners. They go at it a lot and fight, but they also work at it a lot . . . Patti is a strong woman. They are not going anywhere.”

Springsteen and Scialfa vacationed with their children in upstate New York last month, but in recent weeks, he has been spotted alone with his kids at a local beach. Pals said he’s been spending less time at the family’s Rumson home and more time at a guest house on the couple’s farm in Colts Neck, about 20 minutes away. Springsteen is said to have attended his daughter Jessica’s eighth-grade graduation solo and spent a lot of time with Robert De Niro at a beach in Atlantic Highlands.

Scialfa’s mom, Victoria Scialfa, told us, “I don’t know anything about it; I don’t want to talk about it.” A representative for Springsteen, who was married to Julianna Phillips when he started seeing Scialfa in 1987, declined comment.