Long after the Valentine's Day roses wilt and the chocolate is eaten, the scent of used panties remains. This is the brilliant premise that two young women behind a used-panties-for-hire business have hatched to weather this tough economy (damn economy!) Our very own Carrie Dennis spoke to one of the women in a chance encounter on the subway last night. The 20-year-old entrepreneur, who directed us towards her Craigslist ad, and said she was on her way to move some product, gave us some insight into her foolproof business model. more ›

Zuccotti Park has already seen a proposal, but today a couple who met six weeks ago at the Occupy Wall Street protests got married in a traditional Muslim ceremony officiated by a NYU chaplain. 24-year-old Emery Abdel-Latif and 19-year old Micha Balon were wed at around 11 a.m. "Neither of us believed in love before we came here, and now that we found each other, we believe it exists," Abdel-Latif tells the Daily News. more ›

We've heard all about how Occupy Wall Street protesters are having loud sex among the tents and the tables at Zuccotti Park as OWS stretches into its sixth week there. But it isn't all just hedonistic young people losing their virginities and gaining some STD's—some protesters may be finding true love. And one demonstrator who was pepper-sprayed by infamous officer Anthony Bologna shared her story of getting blinded by love with the News: "Nothing strengthens a relationship like a chemical agent," said medic Robert Grodt. more ›

After a 15 month investigation, police announced today that they had busted a $1 million cocaine ring which sold predominately on the Upper East Side and East Harlem. Police said the ring was run by Ceferino (Papo) Perez and his wife, Elsie Detres-Perez, out of their Bronx apartment, although maybe it wasn't quite the equal, Jeffersons-esque relationship that may imply. Perez was heard on a wiretap saying, "My wife needs the money so she's willing to do it. You bag up and she seals." Only a truly caring husband would help his wife make ends meet by hiring her to package drugs for him. more ›

Last summer, Deadspin reported about a little known quarterback with a penchant for sexting photos of his unit to certain former Jets sideline reporters; the report was met with a healthy amount of skepticism, and criticisms about printing innuendo and rumor. Of course, that story was eventually tacitly acknowledged to be completely true, lending more credibility to Deadspin. Now yesterday, Deadspin reported that they've been working on a story about Jets QB Mark Sanchez's alleged romancing of a 17-year-old girl. more ›

The scientists over at Craigslist have been crunching the numbers and have come up with a foolproof analysis of the most romantic subway lines and stations in NYC. And the L train was named the best subway line to find romantic fireworks. more ›

Who knew that in Port Authority bus terminal, romance (as well as vermin) is alive? Adam Frohlinger, a 21-year-old Long Islander enlisted the help of a terminal employee, who led his girlfriend, Leora Feigenbaum to the back of the 7174 bus. There, the 20-year-old, who was on her way home from work in Manhattan, was surprised to find flowers, decorations and her boyfriend offering up an engagement ring. Most amazingly, she accepted! "I'm definitely impressed," the bride-to-be told the Record. According to the AP, he says he picked the bus "because he knew it was the last place his girlfriend would expect a proposal." Both he and his betrothed are juniors at Yeshiva University. more ›

So yeah, Valentine's Day is around the corner, but big whoop, this is New York City, romance runs through our sewers practically— we've got romantic bridges, we fall in love with our doormen, hell, there's a whole genre of movies about falling in love in NYC (or with NYC). But according to the scientists at Daily Beast, you're more likely to find love in Omaha, NE or Newark, NJ than here! It doesnt help that their rating system doesn't make much sense—We get an A for "marriage," but a D for "divorce?" Thankfully, the Post is on top of the situation; they point NYers to love guru Dr. Paul Dobransky, who "charges up to $500 an hour for a personal session," and gives some particularly creepy tips to help men read women's "attraction signals," like a relaxed jaw and tilted head: "She's saying, 'I'm exposing my most vulnerable area. I'm trusting you with my safety.' " more ›

Ladies, meet Martin Berres, a 62-year-old single man who describes himself on his MySpace page (martynycforever!) as a "classy native New Yorker." His heroes include Niccolò Machiavelli, and he is "in better shape and health than most men 1/3 my years. Do not let the age mislead you; I am young in heart and looks... I consider myself to be a find." Marty would love to meet you provided you meet the "paramount" requirement of "outside beauty" and "inside beauty." Oh, and you should also have lots of money and jewelry he can pawn—according to two women who say Berres swindled them out of $400,000. more ›

One Queens FDNY lieutenant is doing something more than posing for calendars and, you know, saving lives; 38-year-old Terry Brody just wrote a romance novel (get a taste of it here)! The Daily News reports singer Shakira was his muse, as he got the idea for the plot when her video popped up on the firehouse television in 2003. Yesterday he was handing out copies in Times Square, and told the paper, "It's a romantic comedy about an NYC firefighter and a pop star and they meet after he saves her life in a fire," and is titled Rescuing Madison. Before you get your hopes up, ladies, this one is married with a kid—but that doesn't mean you can't make up your own romance novel about an FDNY lieutenant/author sweeping you off your feet! Meanwhile, back at the firehouse, Brody says of his fellow firemen, "They break my chops left and right. It's a book for teenage girls for the most part. They say, 'It really brought out the teenage girl inside of me." more ›

Still looking for that perfect so-and-so to share the 14th with? Time Out NY has a plethora of single men and women for you to date in their "Date These New Yorkers" feature...and some of them look awfully familiar. There's the human blockhead from the Coney Island Sideshow, Judah Friedlander of 30 Rock, Matt Pinfield, someone named Moonshine, and Brooklyn's own Miles Benjamin Anthony Robinson (learn more about him here). Not too shabby! But ladies, beware: Not all these fellas are showing their true selves—take Nate H. for example. While he may seem harmless in his dolphin costume (though this could be a hat tip to the Furry culture?), what he doesn't mention is that he can often be found rummaging through trash in Chinatown to make sculptures out of fish heads and other assorted dead animals. But maybe that's what does it for you? more ›

It comes as no surprise that model Cindy Guyer would bring the same stormy passion to her husband's fraud trail as she does to the covers of such indispensable romance novels as Tiger Dance and Desire's Song. So last week there was major drama when Guyer showed up at husband Andrew Catapano's trial (the construction honcho is charged with bribing union officials) and spotted his new girlfriend sitting in the front row. more ›

After reading about Samantha Ronson and Lindsay Lohan's romantic afternoon yesterday in the city (Chanel in SoHo, lunch at Bar Pitti, dinner at Gemma and a party at the Bowery Hotel), we were going to write that if their much-rumored relationship is a publicity stunt, it's totally working. And then we saw this caption accompanying the photos of their afternoon of summer lovin', courtesy of WireImage:

"Lindsay Lohan and Samantha Ronson hold their breath while approached by a homeless man on the streets of Manhattan"

A new website, Subway Crush, could mark the end of romantic quests like the one undertaken by Patrick Moberg last fall, when he created a website to find a cute girl he spotted on the subway. His efforts won him international fame, book and movie offers, and, yes, a date with the young lady. Oh, and plenty of derision. more ›

Forget going out to a restaurant -- the way to woo your sweetheart (or potential sweetheart) is by cooking. Before the fear courses through your veins, don't think that "cooking a romantic meal" needs to be overwhelming or complicated. The simple act of cooking a meal for someone, no matter what the menu, is romantic and special in and of itself. Perhaps the most romantic meal possible is breakfast in bed, and it doesn't have to be as elaborate as this delicious sounding menu from epicurious; if someone's cooking you breakfast, odds are they were there the night before, which is always (hopefully) a good thing. more ›