Marked by Masks and Secrets (Everlasting Possession, #1)

by Maggie Sunseri

The first time I saw her, I thought she was an angel.

A vulnerable, wide-eyed, tiny little creature. She was everything that I was not. She was everything I’d forsaken the day I turned. And her scent—gods above and below—her scent. My fangs ached painfully in my gums. It was abnormal for a signature to be this potent from so far away.

It was an unquenchable need to know exactly who she was and who’d sent her to ruin my perfect focus.

As soon as my threads of control began to unravel irreversibly, I left without a trace. She didn’t leave me, though. I wondered how far away I’d have to go to shake the haunting sound of her infectious laugh. I wondered how much time would need to pass before I’d be free of her. But I soon discovered that thoughts of my angel multiplied at a frightening rate the longer I stayed away.

Though I was calm and controlled on the outside, my heart pounded hard in my chest after our first encounter. Or at least, the first encounter in which she’d been aware of me.

My nostrils flared, the scent of springtime and innocence nearly too much to bear without ripping through my human glamour and pinning her to the nearest wall.

pls do sir🫦

“Let me protect you,” he said softly. “I can also offer charm, wit, and, dare I say, fun. It’s a spectacular deal for you, truly.” No. Hell no. Also, I had a boyfriend. I didn’t realize I was chewing my bottom lip until he was glaring at it. “You’re arrogant,” I said. He lifted a brow. “I prefer confident. Arrogance is born of insecurity and a lack of humility. Confidence is knowing exactly who you are and taking pride in your particular skill sets and strengths. Such as protecting vulnerable little angels while they stroll through markets.”

“Fine,” came out instead. “Correct answer,” he purred. “Very good girl.” The words shocked me, a confusing mix of yearning and shame swirling in my blood. I scoffed. “I already regret my decision.” “No, you don’t,” he said, finally backing up and giving me space. “My name is Kylo.” “Well, Kylo, I’m going to poison the hell out of you with my pretty flowers.” He groaned. “Enough with the dirty talk. I’m trying to be a gentleman, and you’re making it extraordinarily difficult.”

SWEATINGGGG🥵

The desire to protect Evie was instinctual, as strong as my drive to protect my clan and my vision of a better world.

“That you aren’t interested in anything casually. You want it all-consuming or not at all. I hope that witch knows what she’s in for.” He paused. “Do you know what you’re in for?”

is there any other way?

Once Evie was mine, there was no going back.

“I can’t keep giving in to your every desire and whim, Evie. It’s unreasonable. I have needs too. It can’t be your way or no way.”

DUMP HIS ASS!!!! YES a man should do everything you want and need, specially the fictional onesss

I had half a mind to claim her in front of all of them. I wanted to force my blood down her delicate little throat so I would know where she was at all times. And if that was my desire before I’d seen her hurry from the mansion, clearly shaken and disturbed, her blood drenched in fear, I was downright fucking wrathful now.

GODDDDDD I love me a wrathful king in the name of his girl😮‍💨😮‍💨

She was so fucking pretty. How any man saw her looking like this and let her out of his sight was a baffling, nonsensical notion. Yet, I was grateful for it. Because I didn’t want my perfect angel anywhere near another man.

She was so warm in my arms. Her addictive, sweet scent overwhelmed my senses. I had to force myself to stop staring at her delicate features, almost in disbelief that someone this perfect existed. This fallen angel was severing every last thread of my restraint. She had no idea the monster she’d ensnared. This precious girl had not a clue the lengths her hunter would go to get exactly what he wanted. I was a man of obsessions and fixations. I exerted control with ease. I did not hesitate, and I felt no remorse for the atrocities I committed for the greater good.

I wanted to touch her. My disobedient shadows escaped my skin, crawling all over her body above the covers in tendrils of smoke. It took immeasurable effort to pull them back.

shadow daddies for the win😌✨💖

One day, I would hold her while she slept. My shadows would coil around her small body and drive away all nightmares. I would be the only monster allowed to haunt her dreams. The next time I touched her, she’d be conscious and aware of every second of it.

Not only because she’d been attacked—a born vampire had laid hands on my perfect angel—but also because of what I’d witnessed just before the born had dragged her back into that enclave. That sorry excuse for a man, Evie’s incompetent, selfish boyfriend, had seen the vampire confront her.

I wanted to scoop her into my arms and hold her tight to my chest. I wanted to taste the saltiness of her tears on my tongue. I wanted to shove my blood down her petite throat so I would know exactly where she was at all times. I wanted to mark and claim her, to prevent her from ever being touched by another man again. I was unraveling. Possessed. Consumed.

I would know her. Every part of her. The secrets she’d buried, the dreams she feared were too big for this world, every last yearning and desire hidden beneath her angelic mask. I would pry each piece of her out into the open. I would consume every last drop of her the way she fucking consumed me.

The threat to Evie’s safety had been eliminated. The fact that a man could no longer touch what belonged to me was merely an added bonus.

“We’re going to have to work on your manners, aren’t we?” he said with a mocking pout. “That’s two missed opportunities to say thank you, Kylo.” “Fu—” Before I could utter the next syllable, Kylo’s hand was over my mouth. “Uh-uh,” he said, pressing his body against mine. “Be a good girl and watch your mouth.”

AAAAGHHHH🫠🥵

She was driving me fucking crazy. And I wanted to punish her for this obsession just as much as I wanted to protect her vulnerable, fearful heart like it was the precious gift that it was.

Good girl. Good fucking girl. I would earn my angel’s trust. She was smart not to trust a man’s words. Actions were the only thing in this world that mattered. She walked a few steps behind me, following me like a hesitant baby duck. It was irritatingly adorable.

She made a soft noise of derision that made my cock strain in my pants. She had no fucking idea what I would do to her for being such an incorrigible brat—once she was all mine. She’d better enjoy her freedom while it lasted.

sir, you could chain me and I would say thank you with the biggest smile on my face😭💖😮‍💨

Was she afraid of her own magick? Fuck. This precious girl had no one in her life to mentor her, to help her understand herself or her powers. Before me, she’d had no one to protect her, no one to look out for her. It was all so irritating. My angel needed me. She just didn’t know it yet.

In a strange, nonsensical way, I was almost angry that both versions of me turned her on. Even if I knew we were one and the same, she didn’t.

and THIS is what I mean when I say I like my men pathetic and psychotic😌

She would conquer her big, magickal dreams. And I would conquer her.

I understood her more and more every day. I got high off it—off knowing her, deeply knowing her, more than any man before me. Any being. One day, I would know her better than she even knew herself. And I would cherish that responsibility just as I cherished this city I would one day claim as my own.

Her obedience was as deeply satisfying as it was maddeningly erotic. Evie wanted to be my good girl. She wanted to listen and submit. She just didn’t feel safe enough yet to fully let go. I was a patient man. Or, rather, a patient monster.

“Don’t ever apologize for that beautiful mind of yours, angel,” I said. “Or the consequences will be grave.” Her mouth parted, mind whirring. “Are you threatening me? For apologizing?” “Correct. You’re such a good listener,”

thanks sir🙂‍↕️

I wanted to more than taste her. I wanted to devour her.

His thigh pressed harder against my center, and I gasped. Tears burned my eyes, anger a bitter lump in my throat. Yet I slowly began to shift my hips, lightly grinding against his leg. “Good girl,” he cooed. One of his hands was pressed against the wall. The other slowly skimmed across my chest. When it circled an erect nipple, I bucked against him. “Uh-huh. That’s it, angel,” he praised. “Such a good girl. Show me how much you hate me.”

Rage was hot and slick in my blood. She’d been toeing the line with her bratty tendencies before, but insinuating that another man would ever lay a hand on her again was not something I’d tolerate. Evie was mine.

remind her!!!

I was going to ruin her, but not because I gave a damn about purity. But because I wanted to flood this precious girl with all the pleasure she didn’t believe she deserved. I wanted to be everything she wanted and needed until she felt in her bones just how special, perfect, and worthy she was, and had always been.

I slowly ran my fingers through her angelic blonde hair. At this, Evie finally let go. Her tension melted away. My good girl enjoyed when I played with hair just as much as I enjoyed doing it. I loved making her feel safe.

No, I wasn’t a nihilist. I knew the world was a place of hidden meaning, inexplicable magick, and intertwining fates, because I knew Evie was mine the moment I laid eyes on her.

how can I NOT fall inlove with fictionsl men when they day shit like this?! like bffr!!

Kylo. The first man who’d made me feel like maybe, just maybe, I wasn’t so alone. That I deserved someone who saw me, understood me, and adored all the parts of me that others had shunned. But he wasn’t a man at all. I shut my eyes. “Open those pretty, storm-cloud-colored eyes, Evie,” he said, and his voice was his own. No distortions. No masks. “Open.” When I refused, he shoved me back underwater.

“Because your God is gracious, and you are so cute, I will allow a deal to be struck. The terms you offered were incredibly stupid, on your part, but I will take advantage of them as I see fit.” The rain outside continued, but the wind was less violent, and the thunder had ceded. “Your brother will be blacklisted from clan recruitment,” he said. An exhale of relief escaped me. My magick slowly gave in, submitting to his power. “And you will go out on dates with me, anytime and anywhere, so long as it doesn’t interfere with your witchy business schemes. I also have full rein to pick out your adorable outfits.”

would've done that for free!

“Good girl.” He kissed my forehead. The most confusing mix of pleasure, relief, and anger warred in my blood. But I was also enormously depleted. My limbs were heavy, my once activated mind growing dim. “I’m going to clean you up,” he said softly. “You are now under my protection and care.”

It only made me that much more territorial over my angel, knowing that while she was the fiercest defender of her family—she had no one to truly care for her. Not like I could.

Her anger was a drug. Everything about Evie was my new favorite addiction. The salt of her tears, the sinfully sweet smell of her arousal, the way she’d struggled and fought for air as I held her underwater, the most delicious relief of her submission when she finally yielded to my power.

But it was true. If Evie wasn’t interested in me, if she told me in earnest that she never wanted to see me again, I would leave her alone. But she wouldn’t. She couldn’t. Just like I couldn’t stay away from her, couldn’t stop winning her over until she’d yielded me all of herself and more.

“You, Evie. That’s the why you’re searching for.”

I wanted her in one of my shirts and nothing else. One of the many ways I wished to mark her as mine.

And even if the man behind me was an unhinged, deviant vampire stalker, Kylo made caring for me seem like the easiest thing in the world. He made it seem like he couldn’t stop caring about me, as if it consumed all of his attention and energy.

"you are not too much, you are just asking to the wrong person" will always be one of my favorite sayings

“Grandiosity is only a problem if it’s delusional.”

For my clan, I was impenetrable, violent—all sharp edges, brutality, and razored, competent logic. For her, only for her, I was anything she needed me to be.

“You are the most frighteningly complex creature I have ever encountered. It will be my greatest honor to earn your faith and trust. To help, protect, and care for you in all the ways you deserve.”

“I fucking adore you, Evie. I have since the moment I first saw you.” I closed my eyes, yearning to curl up in a defensive position as if he were stabbing me.