Page 42 of Loved By Aphrodite

Clearing his throat, Hermes continued. “Aphrodite, you are being summoned back to Mount Olympus.”

A sense of foreboding came over her as she disentangled herself from Hephaestus’s embrace. “By whom?”

“By the other gods of the council.”

“Why?”

“I don’t know, I’m just the messenger,” he replied. “Poseidon said you are to come back at once. They are all waiting for you.”

Aphrodite glanced up at Hephaestus. “I should go and see what they want. Why don’t you go back home?”

“No.” He took her hand into his, giving it a squeeze. “I’m coming with you.”

“You weren’t summoned,” she pointed out. “Right, Hermes? They just want to talk to me?”

“Yes, just you, Aphrodite.” The messenger god narrowed his eyes at Hephaestus. “Besides, how long has it been since you showed up at a council meeting?”

He crossed his arms over his chest. “Doesn’t mean I’ve lost my seat.”

Hermes shrugged. “It doesn’t matter to me, one way or another, as long as Aphrodite shows up.”

“Alright.” The anxiety in her eased as Hephaestus squeezed her hand once more. “To Mount Olympus then.”

Chapter 10

Hephaestus

In a shimmer of light, Hephaestus transported them directly into the divine hall where the Council of Olympians met. A hush fell over the room as they materialized, and much like Hermes, several of the other gods appeared dumbstruck. Whether that was due to his appearance or his and Aphrodite’s linked hands, he didn’t know nor did he care. The only two gods who didn’t appear surprised were Hades, whose expression said he’d rather be elsewhere, and Hestia who flashed him a sly grin.

“H-Hephaestus?” Poseidon stammered, before he cleared his throat to compose himself. “What are you doing here?”

“This is a council meeting, right?” he replied. “And I’m still part of this council, last I checked.”

“But you haven’t attended a meeting in forever,” the god of the sea said. “And you were not summoned, Aphrodite was.”

Hephaestus tamped down the urge to retrieve his anvil and slam it into Poseidon’s face. How dare he ‘summon’ Aphrodite like she was some common servant, when they all held equal power on the council now that Zeus was no longer in charge? Perhaps this was a power play on Poseidon’s part or maybe hisway of showing his displeasure at anyone who had previously been Zeus’s ally. It was no secret, after all, that the god of lightning had favored him, even though Hephaestus considered making all the weapons, armor, and chariots as doing his part in the war, rather than being subservient to one particular god.

Well, whatever Poseidon’s deal was, Hephaestus would not play his games.

“You, summon Aphrodite? Does she bow to your will? She is a member of the council, too, like all of you.” He smiled at Aphrodite, who only stared at him, her mouth agape. “Come, love.” Placing a hand on her lower back, he guided her to her seat and sat on the empty chair beside her.

Poseidon muttered something under his breath. “The meeting of the Council of Olympians will come to order.” He paused. “Our main agenda today is the chaos currently reigning on earth. Human society is in disarray. If you haven’t heard of what’s happening, then I’m sure you all can feel something is not right.”

“The levels of war and conflict are dwindling,” Ares began. “All the current battles playing out on the Upperworld have ceased.”

“And without war, there cannot be peace,” Athena added. “Not to mention, productivity and innovation have slowed.”

“Crops are dying, as there has been no one to harvest them,” Demeter moaned. “How will the mortals feed themselves?”

“Home life has been interrupted,” Hera said. “Couples who used to be happy under one roof have broken apart. And new families are forming at an alarmingly fast rate before proper bonds can be formed.”

“Music and poetry are at an all-time high, though,” Apollo quipped, which earned him an elbow from his mate, Geri, the new goddess of the hunt.

“I’m sure all of us have sensed the disruption in the order of the world and our realms, and it all stems from one source.” He trained his gaze on Aphrodite. “Why are millions of mortals falling in love all of a sudden? Why are their emotions taking precedence over everything else, to the detriment of society? This is your realm and, therefore, your responsibility.”

Hephaestus’s stomach tied up into knots.Fuck.They’d been so busy running around—and wrapped up in each other—they hadn’t thought about how a worldwide disaster would catch the attention of the other gods.

Aphrodite remained calm as a millpond under Poseidon and the others’ scrutiny. “I am the goddess of love, of course I have noticed these things, and I do not take them lightly.” Her tone sounded like that of a mother scolding a child. “As you said, this is my realm. What do you think I have been doing these past few days? Sitting around, twiddling my thumbs? Even if I wanted to, I couldn’t ignore the problem.”

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