Cater to the Man — Peggy O'More

Inez "mothered" Andy from the day they met, taught him to lean on her, and now that she needed someone to lean on...was it strange that it should be another man?

A Matter of Priority...

It was second nature for Inez Darwell to think first of the brilliant young man she planned to marry before she thought of herself. She had even majored in home economics to make sure of being a good wife to Andy. So when he accepted a scholarship to Oxford, postponing their wedding for two years, Inez hid her disappointment and wished him good luck... and goodby. She also hid the fact that her family was almost broke. The uncle who had supported them all for years had died, forcing Inez's widowed mother and several elderly relatives to move to a neglected old house and gas station-cafe at a backwoods crossroads. It was no place to earn a living -- certainly no place to start a catering business -- and Inez might never have had the nerve to try... if she hadn't met Bart, who wasn't a genius like Andy, but who had a way of being there when she needed him.

Revelation...

Inez took Andy's letter to her room and sat for a long time holding it, trying to bring him back into focus. At last she opened it and read:
Darling Inez: Some day I'll bring you here so you can see for yourself what I can't find words to describe, and I'll watch your face--"
"But I don't want to go!" Inez cried and then sat shocked at what her involuntary cry revealed.
Had she done what she had feared Andy would do--had she fallen in love with somebody else?

Hero: Bart