It had the desired result, but the aftermath was astounding.
The girl of the couple through which Ackerman had passed suddenly squirmed, stopped dancing. Ackerman steered Joan four quick steps away and made a graceful but swift turn so that he could look over her shoulder.
The other girl turned, took a quick bead on the man dancing behind her, and let him have the flat of her hand across his face.
At that instant, the music died in a cacophony and the chattering of the crowd died with it.
"Get fresh!" snapped the girl.
"What did I do?" asked the dumfounded man, rubbing his face.
The girl let him have her other hand on the other side of his face. "That'll tell you!" screamed the girl in a voice that would have awed Medusa the Gorgon.
Her escort, puzzled, stepped forward between the other two. "What's going on?"
"I don't know," answered the slapped one; "all of a sudden she ups and cracks me."