Waters Run Deep

This is starting over…not putting down roots

Getting attached to someone nearly sidelined agent Annie Perez’s career. So she’s not about to make the same mistake twice. This latest undercover assignment in Louisiana—acting as nanny for a famous couple under threat—suits her perfectly. She can investigate quietly and under the radar. That is, provided she can stay clear of way-too-suspicious detective Nate Dufrene.

Easier said than done when Nate seems to be around every corner. And with each encounter, Annie is tempted a little more by this son of Bayou Bridge. Yet regardless of their chemistry, they are worlds apart, and she’s not willing to compromise for love again. But when she needs an ally, Nate has her back. And that could convince her to get very attached!

The sound of a car behind her had her scooting off the road.

Annie broke her stride to check over her shoulder. Gray government car.

Nate Dufrene.

He slowed beside her. “Wanna ride?”

“I’m almost there. And I’m pretty sweaty. Wouldn’t want to mess up your seats.”

“I don’t mind.”

Her mind screamed get your butt back to the house and leave sexy Nate Dufrene the hell alone. Her libido, however, told her to take the candy the man offered and climb into his car like a naughty little girl.

“If you don’t mind,” she said, pulling open the passenger door.

“You look like you could run circles around me.”

“Don’t know about that. You look fit enough,” she said.

“Oh, yeah? Maybe we can go for a run together.”

Her body tightened unwillingly as thoughts of other things they could do together flitted through her mind. Lord, what was wrong with her? Goal: prove to Sterling she could do a phenomenal job as an investigator so she could make more money and get better assignments. Barrier: hunky detective.

She made a noncommittal sound.

“Tell me, Annie. Is that a yes or a maybe?”

Dear Reader,

The people of Louisiana have a joie de vivre that spills over and encourages visitors to get up and pass a good time. Whether it’s slurping gumbo, listening to the sounds of zydeco or watching the pageantry of Mardi Gras, this place is unique.

I love my state, from the winding piney hills of the north to the flat delta of the south and all the places in between. We live, we love and we eat…a lot!

I hope you enjoy my venture into Acadiana with the odd and sometimes kooky matriarch Picou Dufrene and her three disarming boys. If the food isn’t a good enough reason to visit Bayou Bridge, the sexy Cajun men will seal the deal. Life is good here on the bayou. Tru dat.

Look for the other two books in this The Boys of Bayou Bridge miniseries. Under the Autumn Sky will be out in July 2012 and The Road to Bayou Bridge will hit the shelves in September 2012.

I love to hear from my readers, so drop by and leave me a note at www.liztalleybooks.com or drop a letter in the mail to: P.O. Box 5418, Bossier City, LA 71171.

Happy reading,

Liz Talley

Waters Run Deep

Liz Talley

www.millsandboon.co.uk

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

From devouring the Harlequin Superromance novels on the shelf of her aunt’s used bookstore to swiping her grandmother’s medical romances, Liz Talley has always loved a good romance. So it was no surprise to anyone when she started writing a book one day while her infant napped. She soon found writing more exciting than scrubbing hardened cereal off the love seat. Underneath her baby-food-stained clothes, a dream stirred. Liz followed that dream, and after a foray into historical romance and a Golden Heart final, she started her first contemporary romance on the same day she met her editor. Coincidence? She prefers to call it fate.

Currently Liz lives in North Louisiana with her high-school sweetheart, two beautiful children and a passel of animals. Liz loves watching her boys play baseball, shopping for bargains and going out for lunch. When not writing contemporary romances for the Harlequin Superromance line, she can be found doing laundry, feeding kids or playing on Facebook.

For the people of Louisiana who may face hurricanes, crooked politics and record droughts, but who never fail to invite a neighbor to the table to share their delicious dishes and their lives.

I’m honored to live among you.

Special thanks goes to Caddo Parish Sheriff Detective Mick McDaniel and to the Medeiros family who showed me true Cajun hospitality.

Contents

CHAPTER ONE

CHAPTER TWO

CHAPTER THREE

CHAPTER FOUR

CHAPTER FIVE

CHAPTER SIX

CHAPTER SEVEN

CHAPTER EIGHT

CHAPTER NINE

CHAPTER TEN

CHAPTER ELEVEN

CHAPTER TWELVE

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

CHAPTER NINETEEN

CHAPTER TWENTY

CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

CHAPTER ONE

The marshlands off Bayou Lafourche, Louisiana, 1986

SAL COMEAUX GLANCED in the rearview mirror for the fifth time that night and muttered a curse. The child still stared at him with those freaky blue eyes. No longer crying, just gazing into his soul with stabbing accusation.

He clutched the steering wheel tighter, trying to ignore the weight pressing down on him. Guilt. God. Whatever. It threatened to suffocate him. Cold sweat rolled down his back as he searched the inky night for the dirt road. Ten years ago if he’d a blinked, he’d a missed the turn. Much had changed in his life, but one thing was constant—the turn to the Cheramie homestead.

“Almost there,” he said to the void surrounding him, not bothering to look back at the girl.

He felt so alone.

Why had he let Billy Priest talk him into doing something so dadgum stupid? His friend had ulterior motives that had nothing to do with mere money. Billy hated Martin Dufrene. Thought the man responsible for all his problems, for losing his family. Dufrene was a bastard, but he’d not caused Billy’s wife to leave taking their son with her. Her leaving had been a result of Billy’s alcoholism and quick fists—the reason the man had lost his job at the Dufrene mill. “An eye for an eye, and money for us both,” Billy had said, knowing Sal was soft—and that he owed half the bookies in Baton Rouge, guys meaner than a water moccasin and just as dangerous. Self-preservation had won out over loyalty, and Sal had convinced himself no harm would come to the child. He was weak, true, but he was no monster.

He’d not have the child’s blood on his hands.

He risked another look even though the girl’s eyes felt like God’s sitting upon him, like in that damn Gatsby book he’d had to read in eleventh grade. The child’s gaze was steadfast, her small mouth slack, her tear-streaked cheeks pale.

She gave him the creeps.

An old white fence post materialized in the tangled brush beside the dirt road like a specter. Relief flooded him. The old landmark tilted crookedly in the headlights. He hooked a turn left and bumped down the pitted road toward the old house where his grandmere lived.

The place wasn’t welcoming. Old, wooden and leaning like half the stumps in the land surrounding it. Though he couldn’t see it, he knew a tributary of the Bayou Lafourche sprawled behind the old house, a dark ribbon unraveling across lank swamp grass. He loved Mere’s house almost as much as he hated it.

He braked on the crushed shell drive and shut off the headlights of the stolen truck as the screen door cracked an inch or two. Then he saw Pap’s shotgun muzzle appear.

He rolled down the window. “It’s me.”

Moonlight flashed on the metal of the gun. She didn’t lower it. “Who’s ‘me’?”

“Sal.”

The gun disappeared and the door opened. “Why you here? I ain’t seen you since your mama ran off with that Morgan City boy.”

“Sorry, Mere. I—”

“Didn’t need you around here no how, so why you here tonight?” Her voice sounded tired, disinterested. She’d never liked him much, but he was her only known grandson.

He eased out of the truck, mindful Grandmere might decide he wasn’t worth a damn and hoist the shotgun again, but he knew the old woman was his only chance to hide the child until he could figure something out. What, he wasn’t sure, but he wasn’t killing no child and feeding her to the gators. Billy and his threats be damned.

“I got a little girl here.”

His grandmere shut the door and stood in her bare feet and flannel housecoat. Her face sagged in the light of the moon. She’d aged. Life was hard on the bayou and Enola Cheramie wore that life like a badge. “A girl?”

“Yeah, uh, my kid.” He hesitated. Hadn’t thought much more beyond getting the child here. Mere wouldn’t keep no child that wasn’t blood. “Um, my old lady’s strung out, beats the ever-loving shit out of the kid. She tried to kill the girl tonight. Grabbed a—”

“You got a child? Off who?”

“Some gal from Houma. You don’t know her. She’s bat-shit crazy, and I should have never taken up with her. Just need the girl to stay with you for a spell.”

Grandmere shook her head. “I can’t keep no child. I’m still fishing. Got no one to watch her.”

He jerked the girl from the backseat of the cab. She didn’t make a peep. Just allowed herself to be dragged toward the porch. Her hair was tangled and her dress stained with the black dirt of the bayou. He’d tried to do what Billy had wanted. Tried to kill the child. He’d stood holding a trembling gun on her. He wasn’t weak. He’d killed dogs when they’d needed putting down, but this child was different. And she wouldn’t close her eyes. Just looked at him. Like Christ on the crucifix had looked down on him at Our Lady of Prompt Succor. Vacant. Hopeless. And he couldn’t pull the trigger.

So he’d lowered the gun, knowing God spoke to him through the eyes of the child. Knowing he had to find a way to save her and placate Billy. Knowing his own sin would lead to pain.

Enola Cheramie was his only chance for redemption.

The little girl was pretty and barely three years old. No woman, not even a tough, old crane like Enola, could resist a child like this one.

“She’ll go with you. She’s a good girl.” He pushed the child toward his grandmere. The little girl clutched her pink blanket and turned those strange eyes on Mere.

“She don’t look like you” was all his grandmere said before beckoning the child forward.

The girl didn’t move. Just stood unblinking at the foot of the rickety stairs. His grandmere wasn’t much to look at. Wizened like fruit sitting out too long in the sun, with a square face and broad chest. He’d likely not go near her either. He pushed the girl again between her shoulder blades. “Go on. Mere will take care of you.”

“I didn’t say I would,” his grandmere said, but Sal could see it in her eyes. She’d watch over the girl until he could figure out a way to fix what he’d done. What Billy had done.

“I gotta go, Mere. I’ll be back to get her. Don’t let no one know too much about her. They might send her back to her mama and then she’d be as good as dead.”

Enola crept down the steps and reached out for the child. The little girl didn’t move, merely turned her head and watched as the old woman’s hand clamped down on her shoulder. Then the little girl did something surprising. She held her arms out.

Mere lifted the child into her arms. “She ain’t bigger than a minnow. What’s her name?”

Sal pretended he didn’t hear the old woman. The less she knew the better. News would sweep across Louisiana, and though Mere lived on desolate Houma land far off Bayou Lafourche, she went to town upon occasion. Four times a year or so. He climbed back into the cab and cranked the engine. He glanced at where his grandmere stood, cradling the child, muttering words of comfort. As he shifted into Reverse, he saw the child rest her head upon the old woman’s shoulder.

From the open window he heard Mere say, “Don’t worry yourself, minnow. Ain’t no one gonna hurt you or my name ain’t Enola Cheramie.”

Something crept round Sal’s heart and he knew somehow he’d done the right thing. He crossed himself at that moment even though he hadn’t attended Mass since he’d left Holy Rosary and headed to Lafayette over fifteen years ago. Yes, God approved. This he knew.

He backed up and left the old woman and child, heading back toward the dirt road that would connect to the highway, which would connect to the interstate that would take him back to Bayou Bridge where he was currently in an ass load of trouble.

The night draped around him, oppressive and warm for February. A mosquito buzzed near his ear. He fanned the pest away, rolled up the window of the old truck and turned the AC up two notches, but obviously the owner hadn’t bothered with the expense of Freon. Warm air blew from the vents, failing to cool his body, now drenched in sweat. Was it from the damn Louisiana humidity or the sheer terror rising in him?

Both.

He clicked the brights, haloing the grasses growing on either side of the dirt road. No one was out this early in the morning, not even the shrimpers. The road was uneven, jarring him, but there was no other way out except by boat. He reached the turnoff and headed north on the highway hugging the Bayou Lafourche. Businesses and houses lined the highway on either side of the water. He crossed a lock bridge to reach the other side and rode thirty miles in silence toward Houma. Each mile brought him closer to a no-win situation.

He’d go to jail. Maybe even Angola.

He swallowed and tried to focus on the smattering of businesses outside Houma. The interstate would be quicker, but Sal didn’t want to go fast. He knew what lay ahead. Billy wasn’t smart enough to pull the scheme off. Sal should have known better than to mix himself up with a piece of bayou trash like Billy. He turned past the entrance ramp for I-49 and took Highway 182 instead, finding peace in the old highway that would eventually cross the Bayou Tete, the very bayou he’d spent so much time on, fishing and contemplating what a failure he’d become.

The road twisted like a serpent, winding around the Louisiana wetlands before brushing against the tangled trees, sad against the February darkness. It made Sal feel melancholic. He yearned for better times. Bait on his hook, Pabst Blue Ribbon in hand, herons gliding to perches on the bayous off the Atchafalaya. How had he come to this?

His headlights caught a shape in the road. He jerked the steering wheel hard, standing on the brakes at the same time. Too late. The image of a gator in the road flashed through his mind at the same time the truck crashed through the guardrail and went airborne. Cypress limbs blocked his vision just before a sickening thud jarred the vehicle. Sal threw his hands in front of his face as the trunk of a tree hurtled toward him. His head snapped backward at collision and he vaguely registered falling, flipping, hitting the water with a loud crack.

Sal gasped for air as water the color of weak coffee poured into the mangled cab. “Hep!”

His mouth felt stuffed with cotton and he couldn’t make his legs move. His lungs starved for oxygen. He gulped at the air, hoping to drink it, telling his body to move. No use. “Hep!”

His mind raced though his body could not move. Broken rail. Someone would see. Water deep. Truck sinking. He could taste the fecund water of the swamp. It filled his mouth, stinging his nostrils as he inhaled the essence of Louisiana, his birthplace, his home.

His hands flopped useless beside him, like large oars adrift in a current. He couldn’t move. Couldn’t save himself. He’d cheated death one victim that night when he’d taken the girl to Enola, but it would wait no longer to claim a replacement.

Sal said a prayer as the water reached his eyes, but there was nothing to comfort him. Nothing except the sound of justice and regret roaring in his ears.

And the last thought to register before he slipped into a place of darkness was no one would know what had happened to Della Dufrene.

CHAPTER TWO

South Louisiana, 2010

ANNA MENDES, AKA ANNIE PEREZ, stared down at her charge and cursed her bad luck for being the only woman at the agency fit for the job. Masquerading as a nanny? Not exactly easy. More like impossible. “Please tell me you’re joking, Spencer.”

The five-year-old stood next to a potato-chip display making a horrible face. “I’m sorry, Annie, but I think I’m gonna fro up.”

Annie looked down at her shoes—her new running shoes she’d bought with her first paycheck—then back at Spencer, who had squeezed his eyes closed. He did look green around the gills. Perhaps the chocolate milk had been too much. She glanced desperately around the gas station/deli as if there might be someone lurking around the overcrowded shelves to help her. Her gaze landed on a bottle of pink bismuth. Perfect. “How about some medicine? Something to settle your—”

Too late.

Spencer jackknifed forward and reacquainted Annie with the pint of chocolate milk he’d guzzled after they’d left the outskirts of Baton Rouge.

“Oh, God.” Annie jumped back about a yard and stared at the child, waiting for his head to spin around. Then it registered. She was in charge. Of the child. Of the situation. She needed napkins and cold water. “Okay, Spencer, okay. It’s fine. We’ll get this cleaned up.”

The boy looked up, tears welling in his big brown eyes. “I’m sorry, Annie. I didn’t mean to.”

Her heart melted even as she felt queasy herself. Poor kid. The whole thing was her fault. A child probably wasn’t supposed to drink that much on a road trip. She should have known, but no discussion of chocolate milk had been in any of the parenting books she’d pored over in preparation for this assignment. It hadn’t been in Know Your Child: A Study on Child Behavior or in So You Think You Can Parent? She knew. She’d read both from cover to cover, and still had no clue what in the hell she was doing.

She grabbed a stack of napkins from next to the slushie machine and mopped Spencer’s face. “Don’t worry, Spence. Are you feeling better?”

He nodded his head, “Uh-huh.”

“Good. Let’s go wash up. I’ll find the store manager and report our little accident.”

“What in the name of—” a voice shrieked behind her.

Annie spun around. Obviously, the gas-station manager had found them. “We had a little accident.”

Spencer whimpered so Annie placed a reassuring hand on his shoulder.

“A little accident?” the woman said, screwing up her nose. She had bleached-blond hair and wore a Breaux Mart T-shirt three sizes too big for her small frame. Deep pocketed eyes, tanning-bed faux tan and smoker’s lips made Annie think of the prostitutes sitting on stools of the clubs surrounding the military base where she’d worked security years before.

“Yes, an accident,” Annie said, hardening her gaze. Spencer settled his head against her thigh so Annie moved her hand up to rub his head. The books had been very emphatic about young kids needing constant affection and praise. She rubbed harder.

The older woman spread her hands. “I can’t believe I gotta clean this up. I just got through cleanin’ all the johns this morning. Jesus.”

“Good to know the bathroom is clean. Come on, Spencer. Let’s let this nice lady do her job.”

The manager stared hard at Annie, making her glad she had combat training. If looks could kill—well, Annie would be on the floor forcing another cleanup on the paper-product-and-automotive aisle.

Spencer allowed himself to be tugged toward the neon bathroom sign in the back of the store, only putting the brakes on when he saw the candy aisle. “Hey, Annie, can I have—”

“Don’t even think about it, bud,” she interrupted, toeing the bathroom door open with her foot. She’d made a mistake at the airport giving in to the milk. She wasn’t stupid. Spencer wouldn’t see candy until he was returned to his mother.

“But I want candy!”

“Too bad.” Annie shoved him into the dark bathroom and flipped on the light. Yep, the bathroom was clean. Sorta.

“You have to give it to me. I’ve been good. You said if I was good on the airplane I could have a prize. I want a candy bar.”

No more relying on advice from a book. She went on instinct. “No. You puked all over the floor, and now that lady has to clean it up. The last thing you need is candy.”

He stuck out his bottom lip.

“Wash your hands,” Annie said, in the voice she’d used on suspects she apprehended.

Spencer didn’t move.

“My way or the highway, bud.” She flicked the faucet handle so water gushed into the sink and glanced in the mirror as Spencer finally got the message and shoved his hands under the flow.

Lord, she looked terrible.

Her normally tamed hair had slipped from its clip and frizzed around her face. Usually her olive skin glowed, but today it looked mottled. Her gray eyes looked tired. Confused. Resigned to a crappy life she had never intended.

Oh, she knew how she’d gotten back to square one. She’d dared to hope for a normal life back in her home state of California, throwing away a perfectly good career for a man, his daughter and a shot at being happy homemaker—all because she watched It’s a Wonderful Life and decided she needed a do over.

She’d been beyond naive. Okay, bordering on stupid.

So now she worked on a trial basis for Sterling Security and Investigations, LLC, as an undercover nanny. God, it sounded like a movie starring Sandra Bullock. No, she’d been a beauty queen or something. Still, having her first assignment encompass planning playdates and scrubbing mushy graham crackers off her T-shirt wasn’t what she had in mind when she told former FBI agent Ace Sterling she’d take the job. Typing reports for the firm would be better than being stuck in BF, Louisiana, with a conniving, adorable five-year-old and his celebrity parents.

“I’m done,” Spencer said, holding out his dripping hands.

Annie grabbed a paper towel. “Good job. Always wash your hands. Germs can make you sick.”

“And chocolate milk,” Spencer observed gravely.

“Yes, and chocolate milk.”

They exited the bathroom, passing the unhappy manager, and walked out into the oppressive heat. First day of fall, her ass. Felt more like a mid-August heat wave. No wonder her hair looked like it belonged in a Twisted Sister video. But, really, why did she care? She had never worried about her hair, her makeup or wearing kicky little kitten heels. Annie was a professional. Hair got in the way. Makeup wasn’t necessary. And she’d be damned if she ever wore anything on her feet like Tawny Keene did. Spencer’s mother was asking for a broken ankle.

She pressed the button on the key fob, unlocking the doors of the rental car sitting by the pump. Spencer wriggled into the booster seat in the back and grabbed his iPod touch. Annie made sure the seat belt was snug and then swiped the credit card issued by the Keene family and filled the car.

Even though they were only thirty minutes from their destination, Annie knew a full tank of gas was always a good idea. Be prepared. First as a security officer in the Air Force and later as a field agent in the FBI, Annie had taken pride in expecting the unexpected. She had never been without extra ammunition, money, false IDs or any other necessities an agent might need.