A momentary silence was broken by Morty’s squeal of delight. He leapt from his chair.
“A baby! The first Wisteria Island baby. I mean, nobody else on Wisteria Island could have a baby. All the eggs are too old. But anyway, this is magnificent news. Oh my goodness, we have so much to plan. A nursery, a baby shower. Do you know if it’s a boy or a girl yet? We need to start thinking about color schemes.”
Dorothy removed her reading glasses. “Congratulations, my dears. When are you due?”
“Late summer,” Danielle said. “August, we think.”
“Well, I’m sorry that Morty has already broken the child’s ears by screaming so loud. But again, congratulations.”
Clara reached across the table and squeezed Danielle’s hand. “What wonderful news! You’re going to be such great parents.”
Danielle turned to her mother, who had remained quiet. “Mom?”
Cecilia couldn’t hide the emotion in her eyes. “A grandchild? I’m going to be a grandmother.”
“The most glamorous grandmother on the Eastern Seaboard,” Bennett said, “and we were hoping you might want to spend even more time on the island after the baby arrives. He or she should get to know their grandmother.”
“Oh, I’d like that very much,” Cecilia said. She rose and hugged Danielle. “I’m so happy for you, dear. So very happy.”
The rest of the evening passed in a blur of excitement and plans, mostly from Morty’s side. He immediately started sketching out nursery designs on napkins, and Dorothy offered a list of appropriate baby names drawn from the golden age of cinema. Clara promised to compose a lullaby especially for the baby, of course. And Cecilia, in a moment of unexpected sentimentality, said that she intended to teach her grandchild French, “as soon as they have sufficient cognitive development”.
Later, when everyone departed with hugs and more congratulations, Danielle and Bennett stood on the deck once more, watching stars emerge over the ocean.
“That went really well,” he said, wrapping his arms around her from behind, his hands resting protectively on her stomach.
“Better than I expected. Did you see my mother’s face? I don’t think I’ve ever seen her speechless before.”
“We’ve created a miracle.”
“Well, we’ve created a lot of them,” Danielle said. “This baby, our marriage, this wonderful community we call home.” She turned in his arms and faced him. “When I first came to this island, I was running away from embarrassment and heartbreak, convinced I could never trust a man again, or really anyone. And now look at what we’ve built.”
“Look at us,” he echoed. “We built our family on this island, and we’re going to make it even bigger,” he said, touching her midsection.
She rested her head against his chest and listened to the steady rhythm of his heartbeat. In a few months, their baby would join this unique island family and grow up surrounded not by just the parents who loved them, but by an extended family of honorary grandparents who each had wisdom and love to share.
Morty would teach their child creativity and being unapologetic about who you are. Dorothy would definitely impart some dramatic flair—over and above what Morty would provide. Clara would bring music and show them how to find beauty after loss. And her mother, Cecilia, would make sure her child had culture, education, and the confidence to stand their ground in any circumstance.
“Are you still happy?” Bennett murmured against her hair.
“Completely. Are you?”
“More than I ever dreamed was possible.”
As they stood together in starlight, Danielle felt such a sense of belonging. Wisteria Island had given her everything she never even knew she wanted: a home, a purpose, a husband who understood her, and now a child. The island’s gentle sounds surrounded them - night birds calling, waves against the shore, and distant laughter from the community center where the weekly game night was in full swing. These were the sounds their child would grow up hearing.
Danielle placed her hand over Bennett’s, where it rested on her stomach. There was no bump yet, no visible mark to show the miracle growing inside of her, but they both felt it—their expansion of their love into something new and limitless.
She knew there were challenges ahead: sleepless nights, childhood illnesses, worries of parenthood. But they would face them together, supported by their remarkable community.
And to Danielle, that was the greatest gift of all.
