CHAPTER ONE<br > in the poolroom of a bar<br > JANE FOUND CODY SINCLAIR she wasn t surprised.<br > in New Orleans. To tell the truth，<br > She hovered in the doorway of the tavern for a min-<br >i ute， surveying the front room， which was filled with<br > rough-hewn tables and chairs， secluded booths and a<br > bar that mn the length of one wall. The air was thick<br > with smoke， chatter from the television above the bar，<br >i: and the scent of stale beer and male sweat. Squinting in<br > the murky light， she realized that she was the only<br >[.~ woman in the #ace.<br > No， she wasn t. Closer inspection informed her that<br > the beefy， broad-shouldered bartender pulling levers<br > and filling pitchers with sudsy beer was a woman. A<br > ~ largo， tattooed woman with thick hands， a c~w cut and<br > a chtzty baritone laugh. Chatting it up with the two<br > iongshoteman types perched on stools across the bar<br > from he~， she seemed to be in high spirits.<br > Jane was not in high spirits. She didn t want to be<br > here. She should have resolved the matter by mail--or<br > : hettet yet， had someone else handle it for her.<br > But despite the nerves twisting her innards into mac-<br > ram6， despite the clammy dampness slicking her palms，<br > she knew there was no other way but to deal with Cody<br > in person. She d had to reconcile her innate cowardli-<br > ness with her understanding of right and wrong， and<br > meeting Cody face-to4ace was the right thing to do. She<br >