"Of course I am," declared Zoie; "but why shouldn't I be?" She
looked at Jimmy with such an air of self-approval that for the
life of him he could find no reason to offer. "You know how
jealous Alfred is," she continued. "He makes such a fuss about
the slightest thing that I've got out of the habit of EVER
telling the TRUTH." She walked away from Jimmy as though
dismissing the entire matter; he shifted his position uneasily;
she turned to him again with mock sweetness. "I suppose YOU told
AGGIE all about it?" she said.

Jimmy's round eyes opened wide and his jaw dropped lower.
"I--I--don't believe I did," he stammered weakly. "I didn't
think of it again."

"Thank heaven for that!" concluded Zoie with tightly pressed
lips. Then she knotted her small white brow in deep thought.

Jimmy regarded her with growing uneasiness. "What are you up to
now?" he asked.

"I don't know yet," mused Zoie, "BUT YOU'RE NOT GOING TO TELL
AGGIE--that's ONE SURE thing." And she pinned him down with her
eyes.

"I certainly will tell her," asserted Jimmy, with a wag of his
very round head. "Aggie is just the one to get you out of this."

"She's just the one to make things worse," said Zoie decidedly.
Then seeing Jimmy's hurt look, she continued apologetically: