The sun had long since set, and the crowd enjoying the community cookout had largely dispersed. It had taken a lot of convincing and even a little bribery to coax Katherine and Sophia into staying the night at their homes instead of going home with Ethan and Eleanor. Everyone in the family agreed the newly mated couple needed some time alone. That had led Anna, Julian, and Jonah to take their younger children home, allowing Kevin and his adult children to stay longer if they wished.
“Today has been wild,” Kevin said, shaking his head as he tickled Pete under the chin as the little dragon sat on his shoulder. “And I think Pete deserves some kind of medal or something. He did such a good job guarding the food tables while the rest of us were busy.”
“Yes, he did,” Olivia agreed as she sippe
