It was Chantelle who finally broke the silence. Not with words, but with a squeal of delight. Her joyful exclamation seemed to shake Daniel from his trance. He reached across the table and grabbed Emily’s hand tightly. Tears sparkled in his eyes.
“Really?”
Eyes locked on Daniel, Emily nodded. A wave of emotions rushed at her. It wasn’t just shock now, but excitement, delight, joy. There was a baby growing inside of her! She was having her own child! She and Daniel had created a new life together. Their love and commitment had brought them this moment of blissful wonder.
Chantelle started bouncing up and down in her seat. “I’m going to be a big sister!” she cried.
Emily and Daniel’s intense moment dissipated as they were brought back to the here and now by Chantelle’s exuberance. They both laughed and Emily nodded in affirmation of her statement.
“When will the baby be born?” Chantelle asked eagerly.
Emily shrugged, still struggling to accept her new reality. “I don’t know yet.”
She counted back in her head, trying to work out when she could have conceived. The baby, though wanted, was not planned. A happy accident had happened somewhere along the line.
Emily thought about the funny turns she’d been having recently, the ones she’d put down to stress, and the numerous moments of nausea that she’d assumed were anxiety. Could they have actually been the first signs of pregnancy? She’d been so rushed off her feet recently – what with the wedding, the adoption, her father, and Roman Westbrook – that she hadn’t even realized her period was late. As she thought about it now she realized that she’d last had one the week before they married. Weeks ago. If she’d conceived on their honeymoon, she may already be halfway through her first trimester!
“We’ll have to speak to the doctor,” Emily explained to Chantelle. “They’ll be able to work out how long I’ve been pregnant and tell me the due date.”
“It will still be lots of months,” Daniel added. “So you’ll have to be patient.”
Patient looked like the last thing Chantelle would be able to be.
“Can we make a calendar?” she asked, her eyes wide and sparkling. “So we can count down the days?”
Emily beamed, touched by Chantelle’s enthusiasm. “That sounds lovely,” she said.
“Can we make it really big?” Chantelle continued. “As big as a whole wall?” She stretched her arms out as far as they could go.