Is it OK to date a co-worker, and how to keep it secret

NEW YORK (WABC) -- As the clock ticks down to Valentine's Day, one commonly-asked question is if it's appropriate to date your co-worker?

One couple's story of meeting at the office then marrying is trending big right now, but office romances aren't always fun and games. These days, many companies have polices that frown upon cubicle courtships. So what happens when "the one" is the one you sit next to every day?

"We worked together for just over a year, and I never told a single soul," Jacquelyn Smith said.

The 27-year-old Smith and now-husband Tyler McKee were a couple for four years when he took a job at her company -- where she no longer works -- finding his desk right next to his girlfriend's.

"I knew it would be something to deal with," he said. "But eight floors of a building, you didn't expect to be sitting 15 feet away from her."

The couple chose to keep their relationship private from their coworkers.

"We were worried about our reputation and what people might think and say," she said.

And there were several steps they took to keep their work and personal lives separate.

"You should always check the company policy before you start an office romance," she said.

"We weren't showing up or leaving at the same time, and to be frank, we rarely rarely talked to each other," he added.

The couple also kept their lovey dovey messages off their business emails and cell phones. Another important consideration is keeping love quarrels out of the office. Now happily married for four months, they say their relationship is a testament to making an office relationship work.

"I ended up leaving the company and working somewhere else, and we stayed together," he said. "And then a few years later, I proposed. And the rest is history."