Chapter Nineteen: Wanting, Not Ready
The air outside was cold enough to sting, but Katherine didn't mind.
She stepped off the porch beside Rosalie, her hands tucked into her coat pockets, the snow crunching beneath her boots as they left the warm hum of the Denali house behind. The trees loomed quiet and tall, cloaked in white. The silence was peaceful. Sacred.
Rosalie walked beside her, matching her pace easily. She didn't say anything at first, didn't ask where they were going or what Katherine needed. She just was there.
Katherine exhaled slowly, watching her breath curl into the air. "Carmen's good at seeing through people."
"She is," Rosalie agreed, her voice soft.
"She told me a little about what it was like with Eleazar. How she used to be the one in control. How that changed when she met him."
Rosalie hummed, not surprised. "I think that's something a lot of us have in common—having to unlearn the way we protect ourselves."
Katherine was quiet a moment longer before asking, "Did you know you were submissive when you met Kate?"
Rosalie smiled faintly. "I think part of me always knew. But I didn't want it. Not at first. I didn't know how to be soft without feeling weak."
Katherine looked at her, voice quieter. "You don't seem weak now."
"That's because being soft with her never made me less," Rosalie said, eyes on the path ahead. "It made me feel… safe. Like I could stop fighting for once."
Katherine's throat tightened. "That's the part I don't know how to do. Stop fighting. I don't know how to let it happen without it feeling like giving something up."
Rosalie turned toward her slowly, stopping beneath the trees. "You don't have to give anything up, Katherine. Not your strength. Not your voice. Not your fire."
Katherine looked down, her boots sinking into snow. "But I do have to let you in."
Rosalie took a slow step closer. "That's not a requirement. That's a choice."
Katherine met her gaze then, eyes darker than before—vulnerable, unsure. "What if I'm starting to want the bite?"
Rosalie stilled. The air between them sharpened, crackling with unspoken things.
"I'm not ready," Katherine rushed to add. "Not yet. But I keep thinking about it. What it would feel like. What it would mean."
Rosalie's voice was warm, almost reverent. "Tell me."
"I imagine the moment you bite me," Katherine said softly, "and I feel… still. Like everything slows down. Like I finally stop running. And it scares the hell out of me because part of me wants that. Wants to be… owned in a sort of twisted way. But also in the way that says, you're mine and I'll never let anything hurt you again."
Rosalie stepped forward, her gloved hand reaching out, gently brushing a lock of dark hair from Katherine's face. "That's exactly what it means."
Katherine's breath hitched.
Rosalie's touch lingered, her thumb ghosting along Katherine's jawline. She didn't say anything more—didn't promise patience, didn't soothe or push.
She just was there.
Katherine leaned into her, eyes falling shut, heart thudding.
And she whispered to herself, "I think I'm getting closer."