Hey, lovelies, it’s WIP Wednesday again and we’re back with more from my upcoming release ‘Early Sins’ the prequel for ‘Lethal Sin‘. I just premiered the cover last week, so make sure to check it out! If you’ve already read ‘Lethal Sin’ you may have been a little curious about Camille’s sordid past, about how she got involved in the assassin game, which ultimately puts her on the path to collide with Mateo in the first book. I was so caught up in Camille’s story myself that this prequel started flowing out. I’m not sure when I’ll have it finished (hopefully out before the end of August), but in this scene Smith and Camille are at a standoff in their feelings for each other. Camille made the move, Smith pushed her back, she lashed out – and now Smith is more driven than ever to make her strong.

—

The shower had been going for too long, the steam of it making the room feel humid in the boiling heat of summer. Not even the little air conditioner tucked under the window could counteract it all – and since it was only 3AM that was even worse. The day was going to be like being in an oven, or hell, but hell never seemed far away from Camille even in the dead of winter.

She’d had another nightmare.

Another sharp gasp of air that had ripped him from sleep, on alert, reaching for his gun – but then he’d heard it.

Another series of soft pleas escaping her lips that would never be spoken if she were awake. A chorus of ‘stop’ and ‘don’t, please’ that burrowed inside his head and made Smith’s stomach turn.

For weeks after Clinton died Camille had been unstoppable. They’d done three jobs back to back, and she was cold, efficient, fearless. One of the men had even tried to run, targeting her because he assumed she was weak, but Camille had caught him and put him on the ground hard, ending him with a shot to the back of the head. Then she’d looked over at him, a small, proud smile creeping across her lips – and she’d asked him if they could catch a movie.

As if pulling the trigger were as easy as breathing to her.

Death didn’t bother her. Killing didn’t bother her. The intense training he made her keep up with only seemed to fuel the fire inside her. But the nightmares? The memories of what those men had done to her? They were eating her alive.

It’s going to get her killed. You know it is.

He growled under his breath and checked his phone again for a voicemail that he knew wouldn’t be there. When he verified no missed calls he scrolled down to Lacroix’s name, prepared to call and threaten him until he found Roger or Barry. Or both of them. Like he should have already. There were two more names on her list, two more to kill and then maybe she’d be able to sleep. Maybe she could heal, she could be the perfect assassin. No fear. No mercy.

But she’s not there yet.

Just as he went to select Lacroix’s number to vent some of his frustration on the man the bathroom door opened and she stepped out. Her blonde hair was darker from the water, slightly wavy as it hung over her bare shoulders, and the towel was much too small. It stopped so high on her golden thighs that he had to swallow before he spoke so that he could keep the memory of her naked body from appearing behind his eyes.

Focus. You need to help her.

“Want to go for a run?” he asked.

“I just showered.”

“So?” he asked and her blue eyes lifted, still too empty.

What happens in your nightmares, C? What in the hell did they do to you to?

Questions he could never, would never ask.

For a long minute she stared at him, and then she turned towards the bedroom letting her voice drift back towards him, “Fine. Give me a few to get dressed.” When she pushed the door closed behind her he knew she needed the space, he knew she really just needed to rest and get back to normal. If he were a good man he would let her do that, he would take her out to a comforting breakfast in the morning, and then train like they normally did.

Unfortunately, he couldn’t do that. Being gentle would get her killed, and she was too important to him now to let whatever strange version of feelings he felt get in the way of making her strong. The way she had reacted to the nightmare had given him an idea, cold and calculating. An idea to take her training to the next level, to make her stronger while she was still raw, still in the worst mental state – and he was an absolute bastard for it.

—

What is Smith about to do? Come back on #SatSpanks to see what happens next. Everything Smith does, the good and the bad, is meant to make her stronger, to turn her into the person she becomes in Lethal Sin. While you’re waiting for Saturday, check out these other snippets from some hot authors!