One year later, Diana shares with Edith and Andy that she is pregnant again. Frank is still alive, though he has not recovered from his stroke. Anna, Frank’s wife, informs Diana that she is selling Heartlander. Another brewer offered to buy the company’s brand and beer recipes, many of which were crafted by Diana, though they are owned by Frank. Anna also reveals that she intends to give each full-time employee a severance payment of $100,000. After an unsuccessful attempt to rally the former Heartlander employees to open a brewery together, Diana enquires about purchasing the brewing equipment from Anna. Anna confesses that Diana was Frank’s favorite employee, seeing ambition and potential in his youngest brewer. She offers to sell Diana the brewing equipment for a fraction of its worth and introduces Diana to her real estate agent so she can discuss purchasing the property. Diana creates a business plan for her brewery.

Diana’s symptoms become more intense as her pregnancy develops. She works long hours every day of the week trying to establish her brewery. The former employees of Heartlander all take jobs elsewhere, though Mo returns to help Diana craft an IPA. Diana has difficulty building trust with outsiders, but all her friends and family are too busy with child-rearing and career-building to give her much help.