Oh dear. He missed her point apparently, and she might have offended him in the process. And possibly given him a headache, since he was rubbing near his eye. That was the last thing she wanted to do. She'd really wanted to remind the mortals that they should treat women with respect. Not suggest that the god wouldn't. His appreciation had been honest and lighthearted, but Lottie had seen just how far mortal men could take things. Gods too, for that matter, but that's not who she was thinking of when she'd spoke.
“As all men should treat their wives,” she replied with warm humor. The she said something that went directly against what the priests of the new religion were teaching. “Women are not possessions, after all, and wives are more than a means to create heirs. Can you imagine what a Valkyrie would do to a man with an attitude like that?”
There was some uncomfortable shifting around the room at such a bold statement, and from a woman, no less. But others, the majority in fact, chuckled and nudged one another at the humorous possible results of a meeting between an independent minded goddess and a bumbling clod. Mostly because they couldn't imagine that they'd ever be such clods themselves. Philotes attributed the lighter mood to the storyteller, who'd had the crowd laughing and enjoying themselves with his tales.
“Men would do well,” she mused, “to follow Odin's example with his wife.” Then she grinned cheekily and joked, “Well, most of the time.”
Because Lottie had heard a few stories that made her shake her head in bemusement. Freyja hadn't been allowed to remain married to her brother, Freyr, but Frigg could take both of Odin's brothers into her bed? And they called the Greeks depraved. Apparently this Odin was just as randy as Zeus, and Frigg knew about it. Which might explain the brothers, actually. Not that she was going to bring that up with this god. She didn't know who he was. She might end up accidentally insulting his parents and she'd already inadvertently offended him. Besides, her pantheon really didn't have a leg to stand on in that arena either. Now that she thought on it, most divine families were just a little messed up.