"Hey, dat's Jack's dog, ain't it, Taureau?"

"Jack Boudreaux."

"Mais yeah, dat one's Jack's," Taureau said. His look softened, and a grin tugged across his wide mouth as he gave Laurel a once-over. "What, you lookin' for Jack, sugar?"

"Yes, I guess I am." She was looking for justice. If she had to find this Jack Boudreaux to get it, then so be it.

"Dat Jack, he's like a damn magnet, him!" one of the others said.

Taureau snorted. "Son pine!"

They all shared a good male belly laugh over that.

Laurel gave them her best Cool Professional Woman look, hoping it wasn't completely ruined by her baggy dress and lack of makeup. "I didn't come here to see his penis," she said flatly. "I need to discuss a business matter with him."

The men exchanged the kind of sheepish looks boys learn in kindergarten and spend the next thirty years honing to perfection, their faces flushing under their tans. Taureau ducked his big head down between his shoulders.

"Am I likely to find him in there?" Laurel nodded toward the bar's front door as it screeched back on its hinges to let out an elderly couple and a wave of noise.

"Yeah, you'll find him here," Taureau said. "Center stage."

"Thank you."

The smoking reform movement had yet to make in-roads in south Louisiana. The instant Laurel stepped into the bar, she had to blink to keep her eyes from stinging. A blue haze hung over the crowd. The scent of burning tobacco mingled with sweat and cheap perfume, barley and boiled crawfish. The lighting was dim, and the place was crowded. Waitresses wound their way through the mob with trays of beers and platters of food. Patrons sat shoulder to shoulder at round tables and overflowing booths, laughing, talking, stuffing themselves.

Laurel instantly felt alone, isolated, as if she were surrounded by an invisible force field. She had been brought up in a socially sterile environment, with proper teas and soirees and cotillions. The Leightons didn't lower themselves to having good common fun, and after her father had died and Vivian had remarried, Laurel and Savannah had become Leightons-never mind that Ross Leighton had never bothered to formally adopt them.