I'm a mid-40s male who's 2.5 years removed from an emotionally brutal divorce. My ex had a lengthy affair with a married man. She was extremely deceitful, manipulative and selfish, and it nearly broke me. I'm just now starting to reawaken. I've been in a new town for a year now and have developed a pretty serious crush on a coworker. Red flag, I know, but hear me out. I feel pretty certain that the attraction is mutual and I recently initiated our first time together away from work, a walk/talk that went on for four hours. We're the same age. During the walk we shared divorce stories and turns out her ex cheated on her, too, and left her with two children. She's farther removed from her divorce than I am, by a year or two I believe.
Before going our separate ways, I asked whether she understood that I had a major crush on her. It wasn't a surprise. Of course she knew. It was obvious. "But we work together," was her immediate response. I told her I'd thought about that. I didn't know where to go from here, just wanted to clear the air. In the past I've suffered rather than reveal my feelings, so this was a big step for me. She didn't proclaim similar feelings, but I didn't expect her to. She was clearly scrambling to deal with this new development. I later apologized for possibly being too abrupt. She said I wasn't and that she appreciated me being clear.
I don't know her dating history since her divorce but I suspect, like me, there hasn't been much of a history. The job doesn't mean that much to me. I'm actively looking for something else. Perhaps that's a mistake. So far work hasn't been overly awkward. But I do sense a lot of anxiety from her. I'm trying to give her space and be as selfless as possible. If this does work, it will be a long, slow trek, and I'm totally up for the journey. But we're both pretty terrified about the whole situation and I fear we're doomed.
She is so great. I don't want to pass this up. Is there a path to success here?