MORE THAN TEAMMATES | AJ BRIMSON

CHAPTER 1 - Home

Coming home wasn't supposed to make Harper Reid nervous.

She'd played finals. She'd stood beneath stadium lights with thousands of people screaming loudly enough to drown out her own thoughts. She'd played through injuries, fronted media rooms after losses she'd rather forget and walked onto football fields knowing there were eighty minutes between her and either the best or worst feeling in the world.

She knew pressure.

Sitting in her car outside Titans HQ shouldn't have qualified.

And yet Harper had been parked for exactly four minutes and thirty-seven seconds, her hands still wrapped around the steering wheel.

The familiar Titans branding stretched across the building ahead of her, blue and gold catching beneath the Queensland morning sun.

Two years.

It had been two years since she'd walked through those doors as a Gold Coast player. Two years since she'd packed her life into boxes, accepted a contract away from home and told everyone it was simply the right move for her career.

Which hadn't exactly been a lie.

It just hadn't been the entire truth.

Harper exhaled and dropped her forehead against the steering wheel. "This is fucking ridiculous," she muttered.

Her phone buzzed in the cupholder.

JAIME: If you're sitting in the car being weird, get out.

Harper frowned.

Another message appeared before she could reply.

JAIME: I can literally see you.

Harper's head snapped toward the building.

Sure enough, Jaime Chapman was standing near the entrance with her arms folded and a smug expression plastered across her face.

Jaime lifted one hand and waved.

Harper gave her the finger.

Her phone buzzed again.

JAIME: Love you too x

A laugh escaped Harper before she could stop it. "Idiot," she murmured.

She grabbed her bag, climbed from the car and locked it behind her.

"Are you happy now?" Harper called as she started toward the building.

"Extremely," Jaime replied.

Harper had barely made it halfway before Jaime hurried toward her.

"Don't you fucking dare," Harper warned.

"I'm absolutely fucking daring," Jaime replied before throwing both arms around her.

Harper stumbled backwards with a laugh. "Jesus Christ, Chappo. You saw me a few months ago."

"Origin doesn't count," Jaime replied, squeezing her tighter.

"Why wouldn't Origin count?" Harper asked.

"Different jurisdiction," Jaime answered.

Harper pulled back enough to stare at her. "That isn't how jurisdictions work."

"It does today," Jaime replied.

"Can you let me go now?" Harper asked.

"No," Jaime answered.

"She's been here thirty seconds, Chappo. Let the woman breathe," Georgia Hale said from behind them.

Harper looked over Jaime's shoulder and smiled immediately. "Georgie."