Free Sixes & Sevens (Seven Hearts Book 1) by G.E. Kelly Page A

from above. They were right, Sean smelled the pizza. Jaycee took a slice of pepperoni, and one slice of the bacon and pineapple. She didn’t usually try new flavors, but she wanted to humor the guys. Pepperoni would always be her favorite, but the other wasn’t half bad. Once Sean was settled on the opposite side of Alec, they started eating and watched the movie. No one spoke much as the guys were busy stuffing their faces, and Jaycee didn’t want to talk with her mouth full.
    The Avengers is about two and a half hours long, but midway in the front door opened again. A dark haired man, more muscular than the others and about the same height as Alec,-walked in. His hair was dark brown and short, though long enough on top to be brushed forward. His eyes were a deep chocolate brown. Around his waist he carried a tool belt filled with screws, nails, and a hammer, among other hardware. This must be Garrett. He was more muscular than the other guys from using his body to build houses for years. A deep tan covered his exposed skin. Tired from his day, Garrett waved silently, and walked right past the couch, before doing a double take, and finding his way back to Jaycee. Alec paused the movie.
    “Garrett Andres, meet Jaycee Monroe. She’s new to campus, so we’re making her feel welcome,” Lee said. Jaycee managed to hold back her wince at her last name being spoken aloud. The guys exchanged more looks. By this point Jaycee had been expecting it. Maybe it was just a guy thing? She hadn’t been around many guys before, maybe she had never noticed this behavior before because she wasn’t exposed to it enough?
    “It’s a pleasure, Jaycee. Do you mind if I join you?” Garrett dropped his gear onto another side table, elbowed Alec out of the way, and sat down in his place. He smelled of grapefruit, red saffron, lavender, redwood, hot amber, and coffee beans (Polo Red by Ralph Lauren). Yum! As he settled in, he noticed something on the sofa and picked it up to examine it. Jaycee’s face flamed. Her panties! Jaycee quickly snatched her panties from his hand, stuffing them back in her pocket and averting her face. When she summoned the courage to turn back, she noticed the guys had all stopped to stare at her. Sean’s face was flushed as well. Alec had a wicked gleam in his eye. Lee looked intrigued and Garrett looked a wee bit ashamed.
    “I’m sorry, Jaycee, I didn’t see what they were…” Garrett sputtered.
    “It’s okay. This looks bad, but it’s my own fault. I met the other guys at the rec center. I had taken a shower, but didn’t have clean clothes, so I took off my base layer to feel cleaner. I…uh…didn’t want to go back to my dorm while my roommate was there. She’s a bit much, so I came here, but I forgot my um…under garments were in my pocket.” By the end of her explanation Jaycee wanted to hide in the sofa, or maybe under a rock. Were there rocks in the front yard? Maybe she would go find out…
    Sean rose to his feet. He assisted her to her own and dragged her upstairs without a word. The upstairs opened up into another living area, off of which were two bedrooms to each side, and one in the middle against the back wall of the house. A bathroom divided up each bedroom duo. Sean turned into the second door on the left and pulled Jaycee with him. He left the door open.
    “There’s a bathroom through that door there.” He pointed at the green wall between his bedroom and the next. “If you want you can put your garments back on, or you can wear a pair of mine. They might be a bit big on you, but I’m sure if you rolled them up—”
    “That would be great! Thank you, Sean.” Jaycee was relieved. They didn’t think she was weird or slutty for having stuck her panties in her pocket. Sean merely helped her out, no questions asked. “I wouldn’t mind borrowing a pair…if it’s not too much trouble.”
    Sean pulled out a pair of blue cotton boxers, he handed them over with a blush, and a