Suddenly remembering something in his right hand coat pocket, Jimmy called to Aggie, who turned to him and waited expectantly. After characteristic fumbling, he produced a well filled nursing bottle.
“What's that?” asked Zoie.
“For HER,” grunted Jimmy, and he nodded toward the bundle in Aggie's arms.
“HER!” cried Zoie and Aggie in chorus. Zoie shut her lips hard and gazed at him with contempt.
“I might have known you'd get the wrong kind,” she said.
What Jimmy thought about the ingratitude of woman was not to be expressed in language. He controlled himself as well as he could and merely LOOKED the things that he would like to have said.
“Well, it can't be helped now,” decided the philosophic Aggie; “here, Jimmy,” she said, “you hold 'HER' a minute and I'll get you the other one.”
Placing the small creature in Jimmy's protesting arms, Aggie turned toward the cradle to make the proposed exchange when she was startled by the unexpected return of Alfred.
Thanks to the ample folds of Jimmy's ulster, he was able to effectually conceal his charge and he started quickly toward the hall, but in making the necessary detour around the couch he failed to reach the door before Alfred, who had chosen a more direct way.
“Hold on, Jimmy,” exclaimed Alfred good-naturedly, and he laid a detaining hand on his friend's shoulder. “Where are you going?”