1931: Mildred's business prospects get a boost when she starts selling her homemade pies at the diner. With the help of Wally Burgan, Bert's ex-business partner, she finds a perfect space to launch a chicken-and-pie restaurant as business booms, though her marriage to Bert threatens to short-circuit its financing. After an amicable divorce, Mildred becomes the owner of her own restaurant, but her relationship with her precocious daughter Veda is fraying. On her last day at the diner, Mildred finds unexpected romance when she impulsively joins a handsome customer, Monty Beragon, on a holiday at the Santa Barbara shore. Unfortunately, her happiness is short-lived, as tragedy strikes when the pair returns home.