If the rumor mill goes into high gear, that might be the right time.

If nobody seems to notice, there's no reason to share. You and your new partner need to agree on some ground rules and come up with a plan for how you will keep it professional and stay within written or unwritten rules. "You may have the burden of overcompensating with professionalism and keeping an artificial distance, which can be an awkward strain," says Taylor.

That is to say, the employer does not need admissions from the employees, or explicit emails, or video evidence.

Some things are universal don’ts, like dating someone you work with. So is there anyway to make a romantic relationship and a career thrive in the same place?

You spend about a third of your life while you’re awake at work.

Quick backstory: We didn't meet on the job — we were dating for almost four years before we started working together (which, by the way, wasn't planned … But for about 11 months, we sat three cubes apart from one another and kept our relationship under wraps. People sometimes act differently at work than they do in their personal life. No need to send a blast email with "the news" of you and your cube-mate's new relationship.

And what better place to find people who share your passions?

Two of my coworkers have warned me to be careful, as there have just been rumors of people in the past possibly having relations and the woman was always the one to be terminated.What’s not legal, though, is to always have women be the ones who have to leave.If indeed that’s how your company does it, that’s sex discrimination and is illegal.Psychologist Art Markman helps this reader figure it out.Hi, I’ve committed one of the biggest professional don’t’s: I’ve started dating someone I work with. But they happen all the time, and when they do, there are three possible outcomes: The relationship turns sour and your reputation and career take a beating; it ends, but you're both mature and cordial and don't let the breakup affect your work; or A survey by Career Builder last year revealed that nearly 40% of employees admitted to having a romantic relationship with a coworker, and almost one-third of office relationships result in marriage. We are getting married in two months.) It's up to you to figure out whether pursuing an office relationship is worth the possible consequences, good and bad. My situation was unique because we were already a couple before we started working together — but generally that isn't the case, and Lynn Taylor, a national workplace expert and the author of "Tame Your Terrible Office Tyrant: How to Manage Childish Boss Behavior and Thrive in Your Job," suggests you try being friends in-and-outside the office before you make any moves. My answer to all three: "Nope — because we followed the rules." The truth is, office romances are tricky and generally not recommended.Dating a co-worker can lead to long-lasting love but only if you proceed wisely and with care., Barnes & Noble was so offended that someone would actively encourage co-worker hookups that it initially refused to stock the book.She, like a lot of professional women in their twenties, is focused on making serious strides in her career before she has to make tough decisions about marriage and kids.I carpool with a male coworker, and he and I have become friends.It is indeed legal to prohibit dating between coworkers (with a few exceptions, such as in California, where courts have ruled that the state constitution provides broader privacy protection in employment matters).And you can indeed have a policy that requires one of the parties to move on if a relationship happens.And when it happens to you, there are a lot of things to consider about how you go about carry on your romance in the workplace.You might choose to keep it clandestine, or you might decide to shout it from the rooftops but whatever you choose, there are other people intimately involved in this situation who need to be considered too – namely, your co-workers and your boss.