ares senses her presence the moment she's in the same room as he. but he doesn't move-- he knows his love, and he knows she'll find her way to him in a matter of moments. his guess is correct, her soft, beautiful hands covering his eyes in a manner that makes him smile, tilt back against her shoulder. how, indeed, will he be held hostage for his transgressions? by these soft hands, for the rest of his days? oh, what a fate.

"mm, i cannot say i did," he murmurs, sarcasm thick on his tongue. "i must have overlooked the detail of your temple, though i can imagine it's beauty. did you not sense my presence, lady aphrodite?"

behind his smarm and his sharp tongue, his heart is hammering. the moment he'd picked up on her, the moment he'd sensed her arrival, his heart had fallen into his stomach. he knows he's doomed to never be hers in her entirety, but that doesn't stop him from calling her his wife, from lusting for her and taking her any moment she'll allow. he's fought wars in her name, slaughtered and spilled blood on his hands for her to bathe in if she wished.