☕ Coffee, Chaos & Chemistry: 10 Workplace Rom-Coms to Brighten Your Workday
10 great workplace romantic comedies
From office rivals to slow-burn crushes, these books prove love can happen between meetings…
🧪 1. The Love Hypothesis by Ali Hazelwood
STEM girlies, this one’s for you. Olive is a PhD student who fake-dates grumpy professor Adam to convince her friends she’s over her ex. It’s all for science… until it’s not. Hazelwood nails the awkward humour of lab life and the emotional punch of falling for someone who challenges you. It’s smart, funny, and heart-meltingly nerdy.
✈️ 2. The Spanish Love Deception by Elena Armas
Catalina needs a fake date for her sister’s wedding back in Spain, and the only volunteer is her infuriatingly hot coworker, Aaron. Cue enemies-to-lovers magic, long flights, family drama, and one very romantic slow build. This book gives you everything. Professional rivalry, secret feelings, and a trip to Spain you’ll wish you were on.
🎓 3. The Do-Over by Suzanne Park
Imagine finding out your college degree was never actually granted, and now you have to go back to school as an adult. That’s Lily Lee’s nightmare. Things get even worse (or better?) when she runs into her old nemesis, who’s now consulting for her company. Second chances, career chaos, and delightful awkwardness make this an underrated gem.
🎙️ 4. The Ex Talk by Rachel Lynn Solomon
Two rival radio hosts pretend to be exes for a new show concept, and the listeners eat it up. Problem is, they’ve never dated. But all that on-air fake tension starts to feel real, and the result is witty, emotional, and so much fun. It’s enemies-to-lovers meets “oh no, we actually have chemistry,” and the radio station setting adds a cool behind-the-scenes touch.
🏋️♀️ 5. Set On You by Amy Lea
Crystal is a fitness influencer with serious gym goals, and a new rival who keeps stealing her squat rack. Scott, a firefighter with a soft side, becomes her unexpected sparring partner. What starts as irritation turns into attraction, and soon the gym’s heating up for all the right reasons. Funny, body-positive, and full of heart.
🩺 6. Dating Dr. Dil by Nisha Sharma
Kareena wants true love; Prem (aka Dr. Dil) thinks love is a distraction from logical life planning. When they clash on a TV talk show, the internet ships them instantly. Cue fake dating, meddling aunties, and family drama galore. It’s a fun, spicy, South Asian spin on Taming of the Shrew, with loads of heart and humour.
👔 7. By a Thread by Lucy Score
Ally accidentally insults a powerful CEO, and instead of firing her, he hires her. (Yikes, and also, yes please.) Dominic is all scowls and suits; Ally is sunshine and sass. Their dynamic is electric, and the workplace tension? Chef’s kiss. This one’s a chunky book, but you’ll fly through it for the banter, the build-up, and the feels.
💍 8. You Deserve Each Other by Sarah Hogle
Okay, this one’s technically not a “workplace” romance, but hear me out: Naomi and Nicholas treat their engagement like it’s a full-time job. They’re both secretly miserable and competing to get the other to call off the wedding. What starts as sabotage turns into rediscovering why they fell in love in the first place. It’s wickedly funny, chaotic, and so unexpectedly sweet.
🧮 9. The Attraction Abacus by Evelyn G. Foster
When philosophy grad Evelyn Foster lands a job at The Attraction Abacus, a hopelessly chaotic start-up that claims to calculate compatibility with numbers, she’s expecting spreadsheets, not sparks. Between her incompetent boss, a parade of awkward fake dates, and Luke, the maddeningly charming street canvasser who keeps challenging her (and her heart), Evelyn’s soon knee-deep in romantic confusion and workplace mayhem. Witty, offbeat, and full of British charm, this thoughtful workplace rom-com proves love can’t be measured by data, no matter what the algorithm says.
💻 10. The Right Swipe by Alisha Rai
Rhiannon runs a successful dating app and doesn’t have time for distractions, especially not from Samson, the gorgeous ex-football player who ghosted her. But when they’re forced to work together, old sparks start flying. This one’s modern, feminist, and empowering, with a sharp look at love and tech in the swipe-right era.
Workplace rom-coms hit that perfect sweet spot between everyday reality and pure escapism. You’ve got the thrill of flirting over spreadsheets, the tension of keeping things “professional,” and the joy of watching two people find love in the least romantic places (like a conference room with bad coffee).
They also give us hope, because if love can happen between coworkers fighting over a stapler, maybe it can happen anywhere.
So next time you’re stuck in another never-ending Zoom call or staring down a pile of emails, grab one of these books. Let yourself daydream a little. Because sometimes, the best kind of love story starts right at your desk. 💖
