Page 36 of Enduring Magic

“I think so. She spent the night with Sabrina yesterday, but I received a text from her earlier saying they’d probably pop in at some point.”

“Sweet. Holly told me Frankie has an art class, but she was hoping to see Chloe when they came by later.”

The air around them crackled, and they all shared a look, knowing exactly who was about to arrive.

Between two towering oak trees, a thin gold band of light appeared. It grew in size and split to reveal the two teenagers, followed by Damian Dethridge. He paused in the opening and turned to look behind him, holding out his hand to someone they couldn’t see. A minute later, his wife and son stepped through the rift with him, and it sealed shut behind them.

Nate Dethridge appeared uncertain and out of place as he watched the other children. From his pocket, he pulled an antique timepiece and flipped the lid open. With a nod far too serious for one so young, he snapped it shut and shoved it back into his pant pocket.

Summer hugged Vivian, then Damian. “Is he waiting for Delaney again?”

“Yes, Mack and Baz had a function, but intend to stop by in an hour or so. Poor Nate is beside himself when he’s separated from her for any length of time.” Damian shook his head as he wrapped an arm around his wife’s waist. “But I can sympathize. Being apart from the woman you love is hell.”

A small smile teased Vivian’s mouth, but she didn’t reply.

“I’ll see if I can tempt him to play with the other children.” Summer gestured toward the house. “Dad is in the kitchen with Mama.”

“Are Preston and Selene here?” Vivian asked politely, reminding Summer of her deep friendship with Preston’s wife.

“Nope. Not today. They are in Greece for their anniversary.” Happy for them, Summer grinned. “But it’s not like we don’t have these little get-togethers every month. They’ll be here for the next one, I’m sure.”

“We’ll go see if we can help your mother with anything.” Damian nodded toward Chloe and Sabrina. “Please, keep them out of trouble. Teenage girls are too much for this old ticker of mine.”

They all shared a laugh.

The day progressed as any family function would. There were minor skirmishes between children, scoldings from the parents of said children, and plenty of food and laughter to go around.

As Summer and Coop returned to the kitchen for coffee and a tray of Winnie’s scrumptious cinnamon rolls, they shared a sweet, lingering kiss.

“I hope it’s always like this,” she said wistfully.

“It will be,” he assured her in a deep, confident voice.

“I worry that as the kids grow and go off to college, days like these will become less frequent.”

“Look at them, sweetheart.” He turned Summer to gaze out over the backyard through the wide expanse of window. “We’ve all given them a solid foundation of love and support. They’ll always return because, like us, they need one another. We’re all one big family unit.”

“But life—”

“Happens, yes.” Coop hugged her from behind and rested his chin on the crown of her head. “Don’t worry so much, okay? Alastair will always find a way to bring everyone together if they decide to stray.”

And she knew his words to be true. As the patriarch of the Thorne family, Alastair would always keep his finger on the pulse of their lives, stepping in and redirecting them as necessary.

“I’m glad you finally figured that out, son.” Alastair stepped up to the counter and lifted the tray of coffee. “There’s hope for you yet.”

With that, he breezed out the door as quickly as he’d arrived.

Coop laughed.

At that moment, Summer had a vision of their future, and she joined her husband in his amusement. Yes, the next generation would face their own trials and tribulations, but they would all be just fine.

“Better bring out the cinnamon rolls before the natives get restless, my love.” Summer stretched to kiss him one last time before handing him the tray of pastries. “I’ve something to check on.”

He frowned his confusion. “What?”

“Never you mind.”

With a final peck on her lips, he left the kitchen.

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