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something was
wrong. “Callie? What is it?”
    She was shifting her eyes and strangling the
edge of her coat. “I’m afraid we can’t have lunch after all, I’m
sorry. I have to go with Mr. Guiley, he’s waiting outside.”
    Anteros dipped his head so she had to look at
him. “And?”
    She finally looked at him and the mixture of
regret and determination he saw in her face took him back. “So, I
guess this is good bye then.” She started to reach out her hand but
a horn blast from the curb startled them both. “Oh darn, Mr. Guiley
tends to be a bit impatient. It was nice meeting you Teran, I hope
you work things out with your brother.” Another blast split the
air. “Sorry gotta go. Bye.”
    Before he could figure out what had just
happened she was gone and he was left for the second time in one
day at a loss.
    He hoped to Hades no one ever found out he’d
just been brushed off – by a mortal.

Chapter 6

    In spite of the soaring marble columns and
expanse of the room, no harsh echo from their voices disturbed the
peaceful beauty and tranquility of the goddess’s private chambers.
The soft glow surrounding them made the nature of what they were
discussing seem all the more unreal.
    “This calls for drastic measures. With your
Aunt Athena trying to stick her nose in and make a mess of things
and your brother being far too stubborn for his own good - as usual
- it’s time for plan Beta.” The grace and beauty of the speaker was
at total odds with the calculating tone of her voice, but Psyche
had seen Aphrodite in action before so she wasn’t surprised.
    “Mother, I think you mean plan ‘B’ and
haven’t we’ve interfered in Anteros’s life enough already? If he
ever finds out what we’ve done, he’ll go Vesuvius like that.” The
snap of strong fingers turned Aphrodite’s head toward the man
lounging on the sofa across the room.
    A soft breeze fluttered the classical silk
draping her slender figure and the golden glimmer emanating from
within, set off her pearlescent skin to perfection. “Whatever. Your
brother needs all the help we can give him right now Eros, and even
if he does discover what we’ve done, temper or no temper,
eventually he’ll see it was for his own good.”
    She lowered her eyes from his face to the
pair of black biker boots resting on her gem encrusted ivory table.
She lifted one graceful brow and the silver buckles in the shape of
arrow-pierced hearts running up the side of the boots jingled as he
dropped his feet down to the mist dappled marble floor.
    Psyche hid a smile. Even omnipotent sons
didn’t argue with their mothers. The next thought chased her smile
away. Sometimes it took a daughter-in-law to do it. She cleared her
throat and turned away from the window. “I’m not so sure. I think I
agree with Eros on this one. Shafting Anteros is one thing, but
shooting his mortal, taking away her free will, might be pushing
him too much.”
    Aphrodite tilted her golden head toward her,
an all knowing smile gracing her rose bud lips. “Psyche darling,
come now, this is no different from when you and Eros got together.
A little push here and there never hurt anything – well in the long
run anyway.”
    Eros stood up and in a gesture hauntingly
similar to the brother they were discussing, shoved his waist
length silver streaked white hair back off his equally broad
shoulders. “How bad will it get if we don’t go through with it
Mother?” He glided across the floor and took her dainty hands in
his much larger stronger ones. “Isn’t there something else we can
try first?”
    Psyche moved to his side and wrapped her arms
around his waist, resting her chin on the stylized tattoo of her
name banding his substantial biceps and waited for the goddess to
answer.
    Aphrodite’s shoulders drooped slightly and an
air of resignation permeated the room. “My darlings, I wish there
were but there isn’t. This is his only chance. If we don’t turn his
path now, he’ll fall to