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Don't stress on this. Say you write an article about a business/product or two.  One of them catches wind and references that article in an article or a news page.  Do you see a reason for penalization? This kind of thing happens all the time and it is fine.  So unless you are trying to catch a case of Artificial Growth Syndrome by manipulating recips you've got nothing to worry about. In your specific case, make sure you are not creating a significant percentage of your total incoming links in this manner since you are actively pursuing.  Maybe create a badge/seal of approval in this case.   As Seen on etc.  Then instead of emailing begging for a link you can email and let them know they have been reviewed and deemed worthy of your approval

Hi Miriam Virtual office may not be the right term to use in this instance. In the UK we we can rent office facilities for a monthly fee and they are referred to as virtual offices. These facilities can include a myriad of services, such as telephone answering if required, mail forwarding, secretarial services and meeting rooms if required. Many home based firms in the UK use these services so as not to show their home address and have one or a number of  physical "business based address" in particular locations as long as they can pay for them. There is no hiding of address or "black hat tactics'. You are paying to have a  physical business location in a particular area. It may be different in the US. Hope this clarifies it for you