Free Live and Let Love by Gina Robinson Page B

winner. Remember—style points matter. I think it’s time we put those moves
     to music. Nora?”
    “We’ll start with an easy one, gentlemen. Cotton Eyed Joe.” Nora motioned for Roger
     to start the music and counted down the beat as the song began. “Five, six. Five,
     six, seven, eight!”
    Kennett came out swinging, literally swinging, his arms at Jack’s neck, aiming for
     the lethal pressure points there. Jack leaned back on his good leg just in time. Kennett
     missed jabbing him directly in bladder point 10, a knockout point, by that much.
    “Someone’s exuberant!” Lettie called out as Jack kept up with Nora only by doing a
     one-legged hop and moving his limp leg around by grabbing it with one hand and dragging
     it around. “Shane’s winning points with his extreme arm movements.”
    “Quarter turn to the right!” Nora called.
    Shane swung around, doing a karate kick. Jack ducked just in time to miss taking one
     to the head.
    “A little less leg next time,” Nora said.
    “If I had any less leg,” Con said, “I’d be on the floor.”
    The crowd laughed.
    “I was talking to Shane, Con. Just follow my lead.” Nora led them in a stomp, stomp,
     stomp move.
    Jack’s was more of a stomp, drag, stomp.
    Kennett ignored her instructions. He swung around again, going freestyle, jabbing
     and parrying with Jack, going at his weak side, looking to hit the nearest lethal
     point as Jack limped around like a pirate dragging a wooden leg.
    The crowd laughed at his antics, unaware Kennett was trying to kill him before their
     eyes. Jack couldn’t fight back unless he wanted to kill the Rooster outright in front
     of everyone. Which was against orders. Besides, Jack didn’t need an inquiry. And he
     most especially did not need Willow to see him kill someone.
    Roger the DJ was quick to jump on Kennett’s change-up of the dance routine. He switched
     up the music, and before Jack knew what was what he was dragging his leg through the
     Cowboy Boogie to “Footloose.”
    The good thing about the Cowboy Boogie—there was a lot of boogie, rotating hips, in
     it. Jack rolled his hips like a Chippendales dancer and seized full advantage, making
     the ladies scream and forget about his lack of footwork. Style points for him.
    But the “Footloose” song lyrics drove him crazy, calling out his name, Jack, seemingly
     every other line. He had enough on his mind without having a song scream out who he
     really was. He should have heeded the song’s warning and gotten back. But being him,
     he ignored it.
    Now, not only was his leg numb and, of course, the Rooster was still trying to kill
     him, but his feet were killing him, too. Those damned Italian leather loafers had
     rubbed his heels raw. They weren’t meant for dancing, especially sockless. Each move
     was torture, giving him another blister that stung. So when the song directed it,
     he kicked off his Sunday shoes in time to the music. Oh yeah, and one might have been
     intentionally flung at Kennett’s head.
    The Rooster dodged it and looked at Jack with murder in his eyes.
    Jack felt a tingle in his leg and grinned back. A real tingle, as in his leg was waking
     up. Finally. Time to take this competition up a notch and strike when his opponent
     least expected it.
    The Rooster launched a full attack, stomping across the floor in his steel-toed boots
     in time to the music, aiming directly for the vulnerable bare toes of Jack’s gimpy
     leg. When was Jack’s home-cooked XTC going to kick in? He knew he should have made
     it stronger. As in lethal.
    As Kennett danced toward Jack, Jack looked around for help, like the judge. But she’d
     left the dance floor. This was now clearly a free-for-all.
    So Jack broke out his secret weapon—a one-legged backflip. He caught the Rooster off
     guard and sent him stumbling backward out of the way, off the dance floor, and into
     a table against the wall.
    Take that. Next time, I’ll show you what I know about