Marked by Masks and Secrets (Everlasting Possession #1)

by Maggie Sunseri

History never stayed in the past. Great men studied history to gain control of the present and future.

Change and I had a complicated relationship.

“Choosing meaning over meaninglessness is vulnerable, and vulnerability isn’t wrong. It’s beautiful and brave.”

“It’s not childish to be idealistic,” he continued. “All the greats are.”

I was self-aware enough to recognize the insanity of letting my violent possessiveness get triggered by another version of myself.

“They live and love in the way they’ve chosen, and that’s still worthy of respect and empathy. Life is hard and grueling, and I do not blame them for prioritizing safety over uncertainty.” I paused. “But it does make those with the bravery and gall to stand out from the crowd that much more delightfully unexpected.”

If you hide from the world, the world will hide from you.

My breathing was shallow, my head spinning. I was angry. Blisteringly angry. Because why was the first man I felt this attracted to, this safe with—this intrigued, seen, and understood by—a fucking psychopath?

Just because someone is drawn to your light, doesn’t mean they’re made of light themselves. Some recognize that you hold something they will never have, and they will do anything, anything at all, to try to starve that radiance until it dies. Because they’d rather you both live in darkness than for you to be the only one to shine.”

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.

“So long as my sweet, docile angel is in my lap where she belongs, I don’t care where my soul goes to rot.” “You’re

love watching you always,” he said, cradling my face. “But nothing beats observing you up close like this, seeing the way you look at the people you love.”

“My soul knows yours too,” I whispered to The Devil who held me in his clutches.

“I don’t have words for the hold you have over me, angel,” he said softly. “There is no end to the depths of my obsession. Every inch of your body, every beat of your vulnerable heart, every shade of your multitudinous soul, and every thought in your beautiful mind—I need to see it all, to possess it all. Because you already possess me. I fear the lengths I would go, the distances I would travel, the atrocities I would commit to keep you safe. Or merely to ensure you always know just how much I adore you.”

“Ew, Kylo, please stop reminding me that you’re basically elderly.”

their utter hatred of anyone daring to stand up to them. What better revenge than to destroy our artists, teachers, and healers—those with the power to mend hearts and strengthen minds?”

When Kylo unexpectedly grabbed me and captured my lips with his, I felt that same fire in his soul—the counterargument to nihilism that expanded like the cosmos against the deep nothingness of space.

“I loved you before it was rational or reasonable,” he said as the stars glowed brighter. “I’ve loved you for a humiliatingly long while now, but I suspect I’ve always loved you. Like I recognized you the moment I first saw you, and the rest was merely a process of remembering how much you meant to me and always would.”

“My love is not contingent upon your behavior. You don’t have to perform for my love. You don’t have to beg for it. Or even ask very politely. I love you for existing. I love you for being you.”

“Does this foreplay truly need to happen at the expense of my kitchenware?” Princeton asked dryly. “Carry on, of course. I am curious.”

Kylo rumbled with deep laughter. “I love you so much it’s disgusting.” He kissed my temple before returning his gaze to the book.