Jackpot! (37 page)

“You all know Lilly and Jeffrey,” she said, holding up the picture for everyone to see, “Well, this is their new little sister, Sara.” There were lots of oohhs and ahhhs as Marcy held up the baby picture.

“Guess who’s expecting number four?” shouted Sheila Katz, who desperately wanted in on the contest, “Joshie!”

Now Danny was pissed. What was this woman doing stealing his mother’s thunder? He had to put Frankie back into the race, so he grabbed Courtney’s hand and quickly headed over to the group. He cleared his throat and announced loudly, “Guess who’s expecting number one?”

Everyone looked up and lots of jaws hit the ground.

“Is that true?” asked Jamie.

Danny nodded proudly and Courtney pulled out a photo from her purse. There were tears in her eyes when she handed it to Frankie.

“This is our baby girl,” she said happily, “She’s seven months old.”

“We’re adopting her,” said Danny, “It was a really hard process, but we just found out a few days ago that it’s going through.” He gleamed, “She should be ours in the next few weeks.”

Frankie went nuts, screaming with joy and excitement, and as much as her drama usually irked Jamie, this time, she loved it.

“What’s the baby’s name?” asked Rose.

Danny looked right at his mother and said, “We’re naming her Stephanie. After Dad.”

This is where Frankie lost it. She started bawling on the spot.

“Don’t cry, Ma,” Danny said, “I want you to be happy.”

“I am,” she managed through tears, “I am.”

It was bittersweet. Seth had been gone for more than thirty years and Frankie still missed him as much as she ever had. But the beauty was, now her children were honoring his memory. Babies Seth and Stephanie were proof that God and love and the notion that life goes on fully existed. Yes, Frankie Jacobson finally got her babies. And as she watched her happy family embrace, her eyes were shining bright, as bright as she knew her future was. And she felt like the luckiest person on earth.