Hera could not deny the fluttering of her heart at his words, and to a degree she hated how much like a lovestruck maiden she felt right there in her kitchen, how desire and affection she had thought gone welled up within her. Truth be told, she didn't it was possible for her to stop loving him. She never really had. Oh, she had tried over and over again to make her feelings for him go away. Her daughters had helped her to rationalize it, though only Hebe really had any actual grasp on the situation. Even so, she had felt a mix of pain and shame at the notion of willing away the affection she had held for him. Their children had been conceived out of love and passion, nights spent sleepless for want of her husband's touch and attention. Perhaps a few of those nights had begun with tension, but tension that had build up into ravenous desire. Hera found herself grateful that Zeus could not see the flush upon her porcelain cheeks at the memory.<br/><br/>"Thank you, and I..." she swallowed for a moment before continuing, not sure herself if she was trying to hold back emotion or trying to force down the more erotic part of her memories. "I have missed you too, my dear, even if I was angry for a good part of it. For the record, I would welcome something more...pleasant, between us. Though I'm fairly certain divine marriages cannot be dissolved, at least not important ones. Seems it's a bit of an occupational hazard when you're the goddess of marriage. Should things progress well, then perhaps we can consider reconciling."<br/><br/>Perhaps deep in her soul she had always wanted that. Wanted her absence to make Zeus reevaluate his behavior and change, to want to become a better husband to her. It wasn't as if she would be welcoming other partners into her life anytime soon or ever. No man had ever made her feel as wanton or powerful as he had. She had been courted by king and lords who had noticed and become besotted with her refined and ethereal beauty, though their offers had almost always come in the form of begging her to be their mistress, especially when they discovered she had children. She had also had more than a few successful male business partners ask her out for drinks or other outings that implied romantic interest. None had ever received her affections, much to their disappointment. The desire had never been there for them, and every time she had felt her marriage seeming to tug at her very self, as if reminding her that its very existence made anything else impossible. Back when she had wanted to hurt her husband as much as possible, she resented it, but in time she had grown to appreciate it. It had brought her a degree of respect from the other gods, that she had taken the high road even as whispers of Zeus' continued affairs steadily reached her ears.<br/><br/>"No, not at all. I would be happy to bring them. Though Eris' hair color is constantly changing and she can never take a normal photo and Ares, as handsome as he is, is hardly photogenic. He scowls in most of them and the closest he gets is a smirk, though I'm sure I must have at least one decent picture with him. Hephaestus is a tad camera shy, but he'll grin and bear it for his mother. And for what it's worth, whatever comes from all this, I wish you the best, my dear."<br/><br/>She had had to stop herself from saying "my love". Even so, she could not stop the sultry tone her voice had always taken when she said those two little words, even in her hottest fury. Even in those moments, her words had held a specific intimacy meant only for him. In tandem with the soft whisper she had taken so as to not be overheard, she herself was reminded of how she would murmur in his ear when they were alone, fingers grazing across his shoulder or gingerly combing through his dark hair. Part of her had always enjoyed teasing him that way, making him yearn for her with the slightest touch and then playing coy when he caught on to her little game. He had his methods and she had hers. Personally, Hera had always liked to think her way far more effective, even in anger he had never been able to resist her. He, however, had found some resistance when he had tried to seduce her wrath and jealousy away. She briefly smirked at the recollection of how easy it had been for her to charm him, even before they had married.