01~ Mistaken identity

Ethan Carter received a call from his mother as he walked through the intercontinental hotel’s golden double door. He groaned internally, having an inkling of what the call was about.

“Mom, why are you calling me at this time?” He asked as soon as he picked up. .

“Why can’t I call you? It’s not like you have a woman for me to be careful.”

Ethan silently groaned, he knew his mother was about to start nagging him about getting married.

“Ethan, can mom ask you a question? Please be honest with me.” Ethan heard his mother say.

Massaging his temples, Ethan agreed begrudgingly knowing very well the question wouldn’t be good. “Yes mom, what is it?”

“Um, son… are you… are you g-g-ga ahem,” Ethan’s mother coughed awkwardly then asked outright.

“Are you gay?”

Ethan who was heading in the elevator’s direction stopped in his tracks and choked on his own spit. Why would she ask if he was gay? He had never acted that way. Ever. 

“Mom! Why would you think that?’’ He questioned with a scowl on his face.

“It’s because you show no interest in women. All you do is move around with that assistant of yours. People are starting to talk. Please find a woman for yourself. If you don’t have a woman by the end of the month, I’ll find you one!” Ethan’s mother said and cut the call.

That call just made Ethan more distressed. He was already tired from doing the company’s work now his mother was adding more pressure asking him to find a woman.

If only it was that easy.  

Ethan sighed, he had never told his parents about his mental issues. If people found out, the company’s stock price would plummet badly.

He pinched his nose with his thumb and index finger, groaning in frustration as he approached the elevator to head to his suite on the top-most floor of the hotel.

After attending a business dinner banquet that left him exhausted, he decided to spend the night at the hotel instead of going to his penthouse.

At the age of 30, he was already a successful business man who took over as CEO of the CT group when his father retired five years ago. The company being a multi-billion dollar company had a lot of workers hence, Ethan felt like he had the weight of the world on his shoulders. He had to work hard to not disappoint his employees or his father.

On the surface, Ethan was one of the perfect eligible bachelors in the city. He was a handsome young man with a buzz-cut hairstyle that gave him a masculine look. A light beard traced his well-defined jawline and his well-built body was to die for.

He was every girl’s dream.

Tall…

Handsome….

Rich….

But little did everyone know that Mr Perfect had a weakness. He was allergic to the opposite sex!

Ethan was diagnosed with gynophobia (the fear of women) at the age of 20. He loathed the company of all women except his mother. Each time a woman was in proximity, he would suffer an attack and would only get better after taking medication given to him by his psychiatrist.

No one apart from his assistant Josh Knight knew this and he helped to keep women away from his boss.

Ethan entered the elevator hoping no woman entered after him. To his dismay, a group of women came out of nowhere and entered the elevator pushing him to the back.

Without warning, Ethan’s chest tightened. Beads of sweat coated his forehead as he struggled to breathe. He wanted to rush out of the elevator but it was too late. It had already taken off.

Since it wouldn’t take long for the elevator to reach his floor, he decided to endure the attack. But it seemed fate was playing with him that night. The elevator suddenly stopped on its way to the top and it wasn’t on any floor.

Ethan was now stuck in an enclosed space full of women.

The tightness in his chest intensified. He crouched down clutching the left side of his chest. His body was shaking as he tried to inhale deeply but it seemed there was no air in that space.

Ethan sneered at himself in his mind mockingly, ‘Is this it?’

‘In the end, I will die because of a woman?’ He thought to himself.

‘Fucking troublesome creatures..’

“Sir… Sir, are you okay?’’

Ethan heard a soft angelic voice calling out to him. He felt a pair of soft hands cup his cheeks and speak soothingly to him.

“Sir… breathe… don’t worry…just breathe… they are fixing the problem and we will be out of here soon. Focus on me.. Sir, Sir, can you hear me?”

The sweet voice seemed to snap Ethan back to his senses. His anxiety had eased a little and he felt calm.

He found himself staring into the most beautiful pale-green eyes. A woman had crouched down to his level and was cupping his cheeks to ease his tension.

Ethan’s heart skipped a beat.

‘Am I in heaven?’ He questioned himself. ‘Otherwise, why would an angel be talking to me? Women can’t touch me on earth.’

“That’s it.. breathe… focus on me.. I’m here.. don’t be afraid. You’re okay.”

Ethan looked at the woman with blonde hair curiously. Before he could stop himself, he had pulled her into an embrace, holding her tightly in his arms.

She was an angel.. his saving grace. For the first time in ten years, he embraced a woman and felt the softness of her body and it felt good!

 It didn’t matter to Ethan that it had to take him dying for him to be able to hold a woman.

A soft gasp left the woman when he held her tightly in his arms. To his surprise, she reached her hands behind and hugged him back.

“It’s ok, don’t panic. I’m here with you,” the woman continued to say to soothe him. They continued to hug each other in a squatting position. Everything else vanished for Ethan. He felt like he was in heaven. The sweet citrus scent coming from the beauty in his arms made him feel relaxed for the first time.

A few minutes later, Ethan felt a pat on his back.

“Sir, the elevator has reached your floor. You can open your eyes now.”

The soft voice brought Ethan back to reality. He opened his eyes and looked around. Realizing he was still in the elevator and clinging to a woman like a child, he immediately let go of her and stood up.

‘Shit!’ he cursed in his head, feeling embarrassed.

“Are you okay Sir?’’

“Ahem.. yes, I am fine, thank you,” Ethan said awkwardly and walked out of the elevator in a hurry.

It was only after he had taken a few steps forward did Ethan realize what just happened. A woman had helped get rid of his gynophobia! He had held her in his arms and it was surprisingly calming, not repulsive.

She seemed to be the only woman in the world that he could get close to without suffering an attack.

Turning around, Ethan found that the elevator had gone down. He immediately got into the other one to chase after the woman. He had to find her! She was special and one of a kind.

When he reached the ground floor, Ethan looked around but didn’t see the woman who had helped him. His heart was banging wildly in his chest.

He took out his phone and called Josh Knight, his assistant.

“Hello Sir,’’ Josh picked up immediately. He was always on stand-by.

“Find me a woman.. she has blonde hair and pale-green eyes,” Ethan instructed while panting slightly. He had run around the reception area in hopes of finding the mysterious woman.

Josh on the other side of the phone was dumbfounded. This was the first time his boss was taking the initiative to look for a woman. ‘Is he trying to check if Doctor Mateo’s meds are working?’

“Ok Sir, I will find you a blonde girl with pale-green eyes. You have good taste,” Josh said playfully, making Ethan furrow his eyebrows in frustration.

“What the hell goes through your head? Look through the hotel’s surveillance and find the girl who got close to me in the elevator,” Ethan said coldly. He wondered how he got himself an assistant with such a wild imagination. It was not like he wanted to do anything with the woman, he just wanted to keep her by his side and see if she could cure him.

“Yes Sir! I’ll report to you in an hour.”

Ethan cut the call and went upstairs to his suite.  After showering and changing into a black tee and black sweatpants that were prepared for him beforehand, he took out his laptop and started working on some projects.

His phone rang an hour later and seeing that it was Josh calling, he picked up.

“Yes,” Ethan answered lazily.

“Sir, I found her. She’s on the third floor in room 3001. I had to bribe the hotel’s manager to get this information. You can visit her and say you want to thank her,” Josh said.

A scowl etched itself on Ethan’s face, “who said I would go visit her. You’re too talkative for a man.”

After Ethan cut the call, he immediately left his suite to go to the third floor.

 ‘I’ll just take a look and come back. Maybe know her better?’ He thought to himself as he exited the elevator and walked towards room 3001.

When he found the door, Ethan rang the bell and waited for his angel to open the door.

His heart raced as he waited in anticipation, ‘what would I say? Hey there, I’m the elevator guy… no. I’m the guy you hugged… no, sounds weird.’ Ethan thought to himself.

The door opened and before he could say anything, he was pulled into the room.

“What took you so long? Let’s get down to business,’’ Ethan heard the woman from the elevator say as she pushed him against the wall. She just had a white bathrobe on her body.

‘Business? Did she know I would be coming?’ Ethan asked himself, not knowing what was happening.

“Here are the rules, no kissing, licking and clinging to each other afterwards.”

“What-“

Before Ethan could fathom what was happening he felt a hand run along his manhood. Massaging it sensually.

His eyes widened in shock, a woman had never dared to touch him that way.

Ethan took in a deep breath as for the first time in forever, something twitched in his pants.