Page 74 of Mercy & Her Devils

And that view isn’t toxic at all…

Gabriel was fascinated with Scotland as an example of Omega freedom, when he was younger.

But are the Alphas there as collared as the Omegas are here?

Would it be better if Omegas were in charge, as revolutionary as that thought is?

I want equality and not power over anyone.

Lark lets out a bark of laughter, but his eyes are bright with intelligence. “Wow, burn it all down, huh?”

Antonio winks. “Fight the Man, right?”

Antonio dives back to the bed and wraps his arms around me.

Joy rushes through me.

I let out a happy squeak, as he curls one arm under my ass, and another around my neck.

“May I have this dance?” Antonio asks like we’re surrounded by a waltz and not wild drumbeats, fast guitar riffs, and an anthem about breaking free from authority.

“You may,” I reply, politely.

Antonio sweeps me up into his arms, taking all my weight, which admittedly after my fever and time in the cell isn’t much.

I cling to him, feeling his silky curls against my skin, as our cheeks rest against each other.

Then I gasp, and my stomach swoops with exhilaration, as Antonio twirls and then bounces up and down like we’re in a mosh pit.

“Hey,” I laughingly protest.

Yet dancing like this to rebellious music that would’ve made Dad have a heart attack is thrilling.

I feel liberated.

Antonio licks across the shell of my ear, and I melt. “Did you like your nest?”

The bed was meant to be a nest for Lark and me.

I wrap my legs tighter around Antonio’s waist, stroking his neck. “I love it, Toni. I fucking love it.”

I pull back and claim his lips so desperately that he lets out a startled sound against my lips. Then he opens his mouth, and his tongue dances with mine, in time to the way that he twirls me around.

I’m lost in the music, thrusts of his tongue, and whirlwind that is Antonio.

When he draws back, I’m breathless.

“Mia amata.” His eyes are dark.

He kisses me feather light again, before his gaze catches on something.

“Hey, why did you kick poor Prince Artio out of the bed? Did he hog all the covers, or do you have a thing against the royal family? Because take it from me, some of them look haughty but are freaks in bed.”

I scrunch up my nose. “TMI.”

I stare at the teddy bear, who’s lying dramatically sprawled out on his back on the floor with his cape around him like a pool of blood.

Okay, now he’s deliberately trying to make me look bad.

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