Page 9 of Loved By Aphrodite

Her mind raced. Was this the work of another god? Someone meddling in her domain, or worse, tampering with the mortals’ own desires? She felt a fierce surge of protectiveness—this was her realm, her power, her magic that the world thrived on, and whoever was causing this chaos had crossed a line.

“I have to find out what’s going on,” she murmured.

She closed her eyes, focusing, and let her power flow outward, searching for the source of the disturbance. Instantly, a pull dragged her toward downtown—it was so strong she could practically feel it humming in her veins. She teleported in an instant, materializing on a street buzzing with energy, and found herself in front of the Manhattan City Hall.

She blinked in shock. A line of people stretched from the courthouse steps, down the sidewalk, and wrapped around the block, disappearing into the distance. Couples stood arm-in-arm, some in sparkling gowns, others in scrubs, office attire, or even pajamas. A palpable excitement thrummed through the crowd, and as Aphrodite got closer, she could hear snippets of their conversations.

“I just… I couldn’t wait another second to marry you,” a young man was saying, his eyes bright with tears.

“It’s like I woke up andknewtoday had to be the day,” murmured a woman to her fiancée, clutching her hand with fierce devotion.

Aphrodite’s heart twisted as she watched them. Usually, she would be thrilled to see so much love in the air. But this felt…unnatural. She could feel the raw edges of their need, the urgency behind their desire to wednowlike their love itself was a fire that would consume them if not tamed.

She scanned the crowd, looking for a sign, for something that would tell her who or what had done this. This sudden surge of desire, this almost feverish impulse to marry—she hadn’t conjured it, and that was deeply unsettling. Centering herself, she summoned her magic to calm the torrent of emotions pressing around her. Then she reached out, gently, to the love pulsing in the line, trying to trace the source.

To her surprise, it didn’t lead to any single couple. Instead, it felt like a spell—like a web of magic cast over the entire city. And just beneath the surface of all that love, she could feel somethingelse: longing, loneliness, desperation. This wasn’t love in its truest form. It was love forced, twisted by need. And whatever was behind it wasn’t just powerful; it was dangerous.

“Who would do this?” she murmured, her voice almost lost in the sea of voices around her. Her gaze traveled over the crowd again, catching sight of couples holding each other tightly as if they feared letting go. Her anger flowed as her thoughts turned to her fellow gods. Love and desire had many patrons, and not all were as careful as she was with mortal hearts.

She stared up at Manhattan City Hall, her arms crossed tightly, and her lips pressed into a thin, furious line. The buzz of news reporters filled the air, and she caught fragments of their excited reports. “…the City has set up express lanes for marriage licenses,” one of them was saying. “And later today, a mass marriage ceremony is planned right here on the courthouse steps. City officials estimate hundreds of couples will be taking part!”

She shook her head.Hundreds of couples?There was love, and then there was…this. Something wasn’t right.

Before she could dwell on it, a couple tapped her shoulder. “Excuse us,” the woman said, holding out her phone with an apologetic smile. “Would you mind taking a picture of us?”

“Of course,” Aphrodite replied automatically, though her mind was still racing. The couple posed with radiant smiles, their arms around each other, proudly displaying matching tattoos on their wrists—a pair of stylized wings.

Her gaze lingered on the tattoos as she handed back the phone. Those wings were unmistakable. They were the symbol associated with Eros.

“Love those tattoos,” she said, managing a friendly smile. “How’d you two meet?”

“Oh, it’s kind of amazing, actually,” the man replied, beaming as he wrapped his arm around his partner. “We matched on that app yesterday—Winged, you know?”

“The tattoo is actually the app’s logo,” the woman added with a dreamy smile. “The app uses this special algorithm to match people. It’s all about compatibility and shared goals rather than that whole ‘soulmate’ thing.”

“But when we met…” the man continued, gazing at his partner with a soft, awed look. “It felt different, you know? Like there was something bigger at play. After just a few hours, we knew. That’s why we’re here today.”

“Oh, absolutely,” his wife agreed, holding out her wrist to show off her tattoo. “We got the ink, and we’re getting married all on the same day. When you know, you know.”

Aphrodite’s eyebrows shot up. “You…knew? Just like that?”

“Yes!” they said in unison, laughing.

“It’s like we’re destined for each other,” the woman added, her eyes shining. “We’re so grateful to have finally found our one true love.”

Aphrodite forced a warm smile, nodding as they walked off. Couples were flocking to the courthouse, lining up to tie the knot after only hours or days together. Sure, love at first sight happened—but not usually with that many couples in one day.

This wasn’t love, at least not how she defined it. She could sense something pushing these mortals, stirring their hearts into a frenzy that felt more forced than fated. She wanted to believe in what they were feeling—after all, she’d spent centuries fostering love and connection. But this? An app that bound people overnight, leading to tattoos and mass ceremonies…It was like love gone haywire, hyper-charged and superficial. It wasn’t real. It was obsession masquerading as fate.

Aphrodite’s thoughts sharpened.Eros,she thought, her mind churning.What in Olympus have you gotten into this time?

There was only one way to find out.

She pulled out her phone and tried to call her son, but it went straight to voicemail.Typical.

With a sigh, she scrolled through the app store, found Winged, and downloaded it herself. As the app loaded, she watched its slick, swirling welcome animation—a pair of wings unfurling against a pink and gold sky—and she felt a flicker of memory. It reminded her all too well of when Eros was learning to wield his power. The reckless way he’d shot love arrows in every direction had led to countless entanglements, including that famous drama with Apollo and Daphne, not to mention, his latest escapade with the mating Drakkons.

She didn’t know why, but the memory confirmed it: this was his doing, and it was getting out of control. She focused her energy and materialized in his Olympus home.

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