“Thank you,” he said with a modest chuckle, his smile revealing his dimples. “We’re very proud of the work we do.”

I felt a swell of nerves bubble in my chest. This guy was not only nice to look at, but he was some sort of superhuman combination of Earth-saving finance wizard and subway do-gooder. I guess that explained the socks.

Jenna leaned in, all confident smiles and soothing tones. “Hayes, most of us ride the subway every day without making eye contact with people.” She continued, “What inspired you to lend a helping hand—or jacket—to Franny here?”

I reminded myself that I was on TV and forced a tight smile onto my face. This was almost over. I could hang in for a few more minutes. I just needed to silence the alarm bells ringing out their “He must think you’re a complete mess” tune on repeat in my brain. I went searching for something to focus on, and my mind traveled back in time to that moment his fingers pressed against my bare hip, and how even in that frantic moment they’d triggered something else in me. Something that had felt a lot like desire.

Hayes cleared his throat. “I just saw someone in need and offered to help.”

Jenna gave him a bright, adoring grin in return. “A true knight in a shining suit of armor comes to the rescue,” she said, cracking herself up as Pete guffawed next to her.

“I really appreciated that Ho—” I thankfully caught myself before the words Hot Suit came out of my mouth. “That Hayes stepped in to help.”

“And so now you’re known on the internet as ‘SubwayQTs,’” Pete said with an eager grin.

“Yes, but that couldn’t be further from the truth,” I interjected quickly. The last thing I needed was Hot Suit thinking I was pining after him like some damsel in distress.

Hayes turned to me, eyes narrowed. For a brief second, I thought he seemed annoyed by my comment, but then he nodded. “Exactly,” he said. “We don’t even know each other.”

“We’re definitely not ‘QTs,’” I added, shaking my head. “And it’s so not okay for someone to make up a whole story about us like that. I appreciate his help. But the person who took those pictures of us, and the reporters who wrote all the news stories, made up this whole ridiculous romance for us. Like he swooped in and rescued me and we fell in love in two seconds.”

Hayes crossed and uncrossed his long legs, and when I looked back at his face, his cheeks were flushed pink.

“Hayes, you agree?” Pete asked, leaning forward.

“I do. It’s completely unacceptable to post photos of people online without their knowledge.”

“And did Franny need rescuing?” Jenna asked.