I think your co-worker is very much more brave than I'd ever be about giving a hint to someone. Which, if you didn't catch that, I think he was dropping a hit. I have a friend who's in the same predicament you're in. She and this guy had the most romantic night in the world that I could ever come up with. They spent all night, with her covered in his water polo jacket, talking while sitting on the trunk of his car. She asks him to tell her a secret no one else knows and she'd do the same. She confesses that she really enjoyed the night, but then he says something lame about one foot being longer than the other. And it keeps ending up like that.
Her problem isn't fixed yet, but I keep telling her, just make the first move. Same to you.