"Jimmy's thinking of some special milk chocolate you gave him once, and is hoping you may have some more of it," laughed Joe.
"I wasn't thinking anything of the kind!" exclaimed Jimmy, indignantly. "What do you think I am, anyway?"
"We'd hate to tell you that," said Herb, with a wicked grin. "It would hurt your feelings too much, Doughnuts."
"I think I know what chocolate he refers to," said Brandon, laughing. "And I don't wonder that you remember it, Jimmy. It certainly was good, but I'm afraid you won't be able to find any more like it around here. It was sent to me from Vermont by a married sister of mine who lives there."
"Poor old Jimmy!" exclaimed Bob. "You're out of luck this time, old timer. If you had only known that, you wouldn't have had to make that heartbreaking search all over Clintonia."
"Oh, I didn't mind it so much," said his good-natured friend. "I had a lot of fun sampling all the different varieties, anyway."
"I'll say you did," said Herb. "I'll bet you were glad of an excuse."
"Don't need an excuse," retorted Jimmy. "I guess there's no law against eating chocolate, is there?"
"If there were, you'd be serving a life sentence now," said Joe, heartlessly.
"From the way you talk, I guess you don't like chocolate, so you won't want any of this," and Jimmy proceeded to unwrap a sizable bundle that he had brought with him, but had forgotten in the excitement of Brandon's visit.
"I didn't say that, did I?" asked Joe, in a tone of injured innocence.
"No such luck," said Jimmy. "Maybe if you didn't want any, the rest of us might get enough for once. But I suppose you'll want it all, as usual."
"Nothing of the kind," denied Joe. "I'm perfectly willing to go on a fifty-fifty basis. Half for me and half for the rest is all I ask. That's perfectly fair, isn't it?"
"It's fair enough for you, perhaps, but it doesn't make much of a hit with us," laughed Bob. "Don't take any notice of him, Jimmy. Just take your knife and break that chocolate up into lumps, and let's find out what it tastes like."
"You'd better wait a few minutes and sample this, Mr. Brandon," said Jimmy, doing as Bob directed. "I'll guarantee that it's the best to be gotten in Clintonia, anyway. I've shopped around this town looking for your brand of chocolate until I'm an expert in that line."