Page 59 of Loved By Aphrodite

“Phoebe,” Artemis said. “Liam is sleeping soundly. As usual.” She jerked a thumb behind her, where another child lay inside a mechanical cradle Hephaestus had given the couple the year before.

“Oh, you’re so precious.” She touched Phoebe’s soft, smooth cheek. Long lashes fluttered open, revealing beautiful blue eyes. She looked up sleepily at her and then smiled.

“Want to hold her?” Artemis asked.

“Really? You don’t mind?”

“My arm’s getting tired anyway.” She handed her over.

“You are adorable,” she cooed as she took the child from her mother. Phoebe rubbed at her eyes and let out a yawn.“Sometimes I wish Eros was this small again. He really was the cutest baby ever.”

“I wish he was a baby again, too,” Cade said wryly.

“I’m sorry,” she said to the Alpha. “I know he’s not been the easiest person to live with.”

“It’s not your fault,” Cade said, which Hephaestus answered with a nod. “But he’s nothing I can’t handle.”

“I hope he hasn’t caused any damage around here,” Hephaestus said. “I’ll make sure he fixes anything he breaks.”

“Thank you. However, perhaps it’s the Lady Aphrodite who could repair a few things around here.”

“Me?” She placed a hand over her heart. “I’m afraid I’m not good with tools, as Hephaestus can attest to when I tried to fix a shelf back in Thessaly.” He flashed her a grin.

“The damage isn’t physical, my lady, but rather emotional.”

“What?”

Artemis spoke up. “Eros has been…let’s say, very,verypopular with the ladies around here and in town. He’s caused a few fights, and some have turned physical.”

“Two girls got into a brawl at the Moosehead Tavern when they found out he was sleeping with both of them,” Cade said. “PD had to come and break it up.”

“Seems overly dramatic,” Hephaestus said.

A muscle ticked in the Alpha’s jaw. “They were sisters.”

“Oh, Eros.” She slapped a hand over her forehead. She just hoped it wouldn’t take a few decades for him to learn.

“Maybe we can—oh!” Artemis waved her hand in the air at someone behind Aphrodite. “Over here!”

Aphrodite turned to where Artemis was waving and saw a young woman walking toward them. She looked to be in her mid to late twenties, though, with her petite stature and round cheeks, it would be easy to mistake her for much younger.

“Everyone, this is Psyche,” Artemis introduced. “She’s visiting us from the Vancouver Pack and just arrived a few hours ago. Psyche, this is Aphrodite and Hephaestus. I hope you don’t mind, since she’s here anyway, I thought I’d invite her to eat with us at the reception.”

“Of course, we don’t mind. Like I said, you can invite anyone to lunch,” Aphrodite said. “So, Psyche, you’re also a wolf shifter?”

“Yes.”

A beat passed as Aphrodite waited for the young woman to follow up with more information. Instead, her hazel eyes remained unblinking as they stared back at her.

“She’s doing research in the area,” Artemis said, cutting through the awkwardness. “For your PhD, right?”

“Yes. Is that one of the babies?” she asked Aphrodite.

“Uh, yeah.”

Psyche cocked her head to the side. “Can I hold her?”

Aphrodite glanced over at Artemis, who nodded. “Sure.” She handed Phoebe over to Psyche. “Do you have children of your own?”

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