Nels finally decides that he has had enough of Harriet's bossy ways and decides to take the store on the road. He buys a wagon, stocks it with goods and heads out, leaving an embarrassed and angry Harriet behind to tend the store and the children by herself. While traveling, Nels boards at Molly's, who is a pretty, outgoing Irish woman who takes a special interest in Nels and believes that he is not married. Nels finds himself falling for Molly, who dotes and cooks for him the way Harriet never has. To make matters more complex, Charles happens to walk in to the boarding house looking for a place to stay just as Molly is giving Nels a kiss. Nels is faced with the decision of leaving Harriet for the younger Molly and having a "Second Spring."