The longways dance had evolved into a wide circle of people who were clapping in time with Wilfreda’s up-tempo polka music. In the middle of this ring were three dozen couples, including Lingham and Beatrice, who cavorted with each other like birds that were caught in a gale, spinning, twirling, and clasping each other while trying to make sense of everything. A few of the bride-to-be’s blond curls came loose from the back of her head, and her neckline dampened with sweat as she kicked out an inexorable riot upon the floor that was barely matched by her fiancé’s backwards footwork.
Oswell recalled the very first time that he had seen Lingham dance in Alabama and grinned at the memory.
At the piano, Wilfreda raised the tempo and wove a few sinister notes into the melody.
The rancher look
