After his partner is killed by the merciless crime boss Losado (Jeroen Krabbé), Chicago cop Eddie Jillette (Richard Gere) takes to New Orleans to settle the score. When he finds Losado's mistress, Michel (Kim Basinger), Eddie handcuffs himself to the girl and heads for the bayou in an effort to draw out his rival. And though squatting in a swamp handcuffed to another person is no recipe for romance, Eddie and Michel soon find themselves falling in love even as Losado is closing in.