Chapter Nine

Anna waited for Christian at the back entrance of her office building. She scolded herself for not thinking this through. If Christian saw Jack, he would immediately see Jack as a threat and she didn't want to witness some sort of alpha male pissing contest. She was also worried about Christian's mental state; he was just recovering from separating himself from his wolf. He may not be himself yet and she did not want him unnecessarily agitated.

She saw Christian's car turn toward her. Somehow she was able to tell something was off. Taylor parked the car in front of her, stepped out of the car and gave her a quick look. Something was wrong. Had Christian relapsed? Taylor opened the door and Anna sat down in the passenger seat and looked directly at Christian. He scrolled through his phone as if she wasn't there. He looked up at her and gave her a weak smile.

"Hi," said Christian.

"Hi, is everything okay?"

His eyes did not waiver, but she knew he was hiding something.

"Everything is fine. Taylor, can you take us home, please."

She leaned back in the chair. Maybe, he was just busy. He did miss a full day from work. He also could have called and let her know he needed some time to himself tonight. Would she be a little upset? Of course, but she would have let him have the night to himself.

Taylor did not like how Christian was treating Anna. Christian was putting up his walls again. This morning, Taylor was sure Christian was alright, but now Christian was acting cold again.

"Taylor, I've changed my mind," said Christian.

Christian turned toward Anna. She had no idea what was going to come out of this man's mouth.

"I'd like to take you to a restaurant, is that okay?"

She looked down at her white blouse and fitted black skirt and back at him. She felt dressed enough for a date so she agreed to go. He smiled at her again and she did not like it.

"Taylor, Michael Oro's please."

"Kate has been trying to get us in there for weeks. Do you have a reservation?"

He eyed her. Of course, he didn't. He planned to walk in there and be seated at whatever table he liked. She exhaled. She had already agreed to go. Maybe she could convince Christian to go on a double date with Kate and Elliot sometime. She looked down at Christian's free hand. She wanted to reach for it, but decided against it. He did not want to be touched right now.

As expected, Christian and she were seated as soon as he walked up to the hostess and said his name. The hostess guided them to a back room. Anna imagined that most restaurants like this had extra space for surprise visits. The hostess placed each menu on the table and asked if they wanted anything to drink. Anna and Christian declined. They both knew she had other things to do. Christian pulled a chair out for Anna and waited for her to sit down. She sat down and he easily lifted her chair and moved her toward the table. She looked around and hoped no one noticed him using his strength.

"Most men just slide the chair toward the table."

"I'm not like other men."

She forced herself not to roll her eyes at him.

He picked up the menu and looked at it as if it was an important contract that he planned to sign. She picked up her menu and tried to focus on the words in front of her instead of thinking about his odd behavior. Since they were in public, she planned to behave until she was able to privately ask him what the heck was going on. Maybe that was his plan all along? This wasn't a date, this was a distraction. Her blood started to boil. He eyed her over the menu. He obviously sensed her anger.

"What is it, something happened at work?"

"No, not at work."

"Are you upset with me?"

She eyed him and he had his answer; he'd been caught. He was trying to have one last meal together, but now he may have made everything worse.

"You are upset with me."

"Yes! Yes, Christian, I'm upset with you. You brought me here and took away a perfectly good table for another couple."

He bristled. Only four other people in Seattle were allowed to reserve this table. He hadn't ruined anyone's evening. He knew if he corrected her assumptions, she would just become more upset with him, so he left her last comment alone.

"You're right; I should have taken you home."

She blinked and looked at him. What did he mean he should have taken her home? Was he trying to break up with her? They had just gotten back together and made love on his floor. No, this can't be right. He must be out of his mind again to think he can have sex with her and leave her the next day. Their relationship was worth more than that.

"What do you mean, Christian?"

Before Christian could speak, their waiter arrived at the table.

Anna stomped to the car, opened the passenger door and slammed it shut. Taylor decided it was best to stay out of this conflict. Christian looked unfazed as he walked to the car, sat down beside Anna and shut the door.

"Where to," asked Taylor.

"Take us to his apartment please," said Anna.

She was not going to give him any leeway to sabotage their relationship. Taylor glanced at Christian through his rearview mirror. Christian nodded this head slightly to signal that it was alright to follow Anna's orders.

After Taylor parked the car, Christian turned to face Anna.

"I'm sorry; I should have handled this differently."

She folded her arms over her chest.

"You mean handling breaking up with me differently?"

He closed his mouth and she waited for him to speak. So it was true. He planned to end their relationship before they even had a chance.

"I can't believe this. I'm not talking about his in the car."

She opened the car door. Christian and Taylor looked at each other.

"Christian!"

Christian and Taylor jumped slightly before Christian walked to toward the elevator to catch up with Anna.

Christian followed Anna into the living room. She hadn't faced him since she started walking toward the elevator. She stood away from him, but he smelled her tears. He quickly walked up to her and turned her around to face him. She quickly covered her face with her hands.

"Anna, look at me."

She moved her hands away and looked up at him proudly with red watery eyes. If he wanted to see her so badly, then he would have to deal with her tears. He took out the grey handkerchief from his jacket pocket and delicately wiped her fallen tears away. His touch was so gentle when he wanted it to be. She closed her eyes.

"I'm sorry, Anna. I just don't want to hurt you."

"This isn't hurting me?"

He placed his hands in his pockets; she waited for his excuse. She was starting to debate if it was worth staying together. Was this some sort of payback? Christian was known to be a hard business man, but she never thought he would do something so cruel to her. He closed his eyes; the only way she would let him go was if he told her everything.

"I saw my wolf in my office today and it ran towards me."

"What do you mean?"

He opened his eyes and rubbed his forehead.

"It means I hallucinated; I'm still sick Anna. I can't have you around me when I lose complete control."

"Christian…"

"I'm serious; I plan to make arrangements and do what I have to do."

She took a step back. What did he mean by make arrangements? Was he going to hurt himself? Taylor would never agree to it and she could not even imagine what Corin would do if Christian died.

"So you're giving up. Christian Grey, the self-made billionaire and werewolf prince is giving up on himself?"

His lips curled, but he did not snarl at her. Good, she was glad to see that he still had some pride left. She had to push him and make him want to fight again. He wasn't a guy that needed hugs and kisses, he needed to be kicked in the ass and reminded that he had responsibilities and options. He wasn't dead or dying, so he still had a chance to survive this.

"When did you become so afraid of your own shadow?"

He clenched his jaw, she was challenging him and he didn't like it. What was she trying to do? He just admitted that he might be unstable and now she's trying to set him off.

"I've said what I needed to say, it's over."

He turned away from her and walked toward his bedroom. His chest felt like someone stepped on it with a sharp nail shoe. He just needed to keep this façade up for a few more minutes to convince her that he was done with her. She stood there helpless and watched him walk away. He mind was made up. Soon her legs would allow her to walk again, but for right now, all she could do was stand there and watch him walk away from her.

He took out his cell phone to call Taylor and suddenly fell to the ground. Anna rushed toward him.

"Stop," he said in a strained inhuman voice.

His wolf was taking over his body again, but this wasn't his wolf. A mindless beast was trying to break through his body.

"Anna, please …you have to leave. This isn't my wolf, it's…"

His back cracked and his body contorted. Anna watched in horror. She didn't know how to help him. Should she run away? No, if she left, there would be no hope for him. She kneeled down beside him. He yelled out again.

"Leave…"

It was the last words he said to her before his eyes became vacant. Instead of pure grey hairs, black and grey hairs started to push through his skin. He was transforming into something else. He would be gone soon. A light wind blew past her.

"I know what I have to do."

Her eyes turned white and she looked down at the nearly fully formed beast in front of her.

"Stop," she said.

The wolf whimpered and the transformation ceased. He was now a mutated creature lying on the floor filled with fear. She placed her hand on his stomach and focused on repairing him. Her powers guided her to what needed to be done. The wolf shook and started to transform back into Christian. He looked up at her not knowing what to think. She stood up.

"Stand up," she commanded.

He stood up against his will and could not move after that. She placed her hands on the side of his face.

"I can help you."

He groaned as he felt something being pulled from his body.

"Anna…"

She continued to hold his head in place. What was she? Both of their eyes rolled in the back of their heads as their bodies became weak. She felt something pulling from her as well. Soon they fell to the ground across from each other with their eyes closed. Their essence had been changed.

Anna opened her eyes and sat up slowly. The last thing she remembered was seeing Christian walk away and…she remembered the rest. She discovered her powers? It had to be a dream. Maybe she was still sleeping at the office and the day old lunch was getting to her. She reached to touch her forehead and stopped when she noticed her hand. It wasn't hers, but it looked familiar. She looked down at her body. She was naked and she had a penis! What happened? She looked over at the other body, saw it stand up and stumble before touching the back of her head.

"Christian?"

Anna's body looked back at her.

"Anna?"

Christian's eyes widened. He looked down at the body he was in and saw Anna's dress and heels.

"What did you do, Anna?"

"I don't know."

Thank you for reading! Anna's powers have been revealed and there's more to come. I plan to have some fun with the body swap as well. Anna's journey is going to be a struggle, but Christian's previous experience with his own transformation will help her through this.

As always, I appreciate your reviews, comments and constructive criticism.