Drive and Determination (21 page)

Chapter 20

            Elyssa mulled over Gina’s last remark.
The fact that Will sent Gina to relay the message instead of communicating with her himself clearly
indicated his disinclination to see her or to have any further contact with her again.
            Gina stood up and walked over to a small table that had a wood carving on it and picked it up. “Did you get this in Guatemala?”
            Elyssa nodded. “Yes, at Lake Atitlan in the market place.”
            “Oh, that reminds me,” she said as she turned around. “Pemberleo has also established a memorial for Chad.”
            Elyssa’s eyes widened. “I’m so glad! What will it be?”
            “A scholarship is being set up in Chad’s name. One will be made available each year for a young man or woman whose family grows coffee beans for Pemberleo Coffee to enable him or her to further their education. A stipend will also be given to help the family hire others to replace the work that their child would have done. I believe the first is going to a young man named Pedro.”
            “Pedro?” Elyssa exclaimed. “Oh, I know he will appreciate it!”
            Elyssa’s joy at hearing what Will had done was tinged by the shame she felt by her presumptions and the heated words she lashed out at him at the airport. She was silent for a while and Gina asked if she was all right.
            Elyssa laughed remorsefully. “I just can’t believe that Will did all this.”
            “Does it surprise you?”
            “I confess it does. I guess I…” Elyssa stopped. She knew she would be dredging up her original opinion of him and suddenly felt uncomfortable speaking so critically of Will to his sister.
            Gina’s eyebrows lifted as she encouraged Elyssa to finish.
            “I’m sorry, Gina, but sometimes I’ve wondered whether he even had the ability to consider other people or their feelings.” Elyssa shook her head. “There were times he seemed to care little for anything else but Pemberleo.”
            Gina winced and sat back down. “Oh, my brother!” she said in a soft whisper. “You’re not the only one who sees him that way, Elyssa, and it’s true that a couple of years ago he was consumed by the company. I think he felt he was honoring our father by putting his whole self into it. He never neglected me and has always had the greatest regard for our family, but he struggles with showing compassion for others. I don’t think he lacks compassion, but he never really knew how to show it. I believe he is changing for the better, though.”
            Elyssa took a deep breath as she recalled Janet’s similar reference, but there was still so much she needed to know. “Gina, do you know anything about your brother trying to talk Chad out of asking my sister to marry him?”
            Gina sighed. “Yes, as a matter of fact I do know he advised Chad that way.”
            “Do you know why?”
            Gina looked down as though she were thinking. When she looked up, she said softly, “From what I understand of the situation, when Chad came to him, Will was already making plans to offer him the promotion. That meant he would be moving him to Guatemala. He didn’t want to mention the promotion to Chad, as he wasn’t yet sure of the particulars.”
            Elyssa interjected, “How could he justify his advice when he didn’t even know Janet that well?”
            Gina let out a sigh and smiled softly. “He did know Chad. He knew Chad was very easy going and would adapt anywhere. Not many people can pick up and go live in a foreign country. From what he saw of Janet, I believe he wondered whether she would be homesick the first month and talk him into coming back home. Perhaps she would have talked him out of accepting the promotion at all. Will knew Chad was perfect for the job and… well, yes, he was putting Pemberleo’s welfare before his friend’s.”
            “I just have a difficult time believing Will had any right to do that,” Elyssa lamented in frustration.
            Gina nodded. “Perhaps he was wrong, but I believe that it was merely a suggestion, Elyssa. What he was about to offer Chad was going to directly affect Janet if they married, but he was not able to explain his reasoning at the time. Besides, I don’t think Chad was offended by it. He still asked William to be his best man at his wedding.”
            “Sometimes your brother’s behavior is so incomprehensible to me!”
            Gina looked at Elyssa and smiled; her eyes sparkling a knowing gleam.
            “What?” asked Elyssa. “You look as if you know something.”
            Gina let out a breathy chuckle. “When my father took Will and me to Guatemala when we were younger, he used to say that I was like the beautiful flowers that dotted the landscape and Will was like the coffee beans.”
            Now it was Elyssa’s turn to laugh. “Coffee beans! I thought of him more as one of those volcanoes!”
            Gina tilted her head at Elyssa. “Really? A volcano?” A gleam sparkled in Gina’s eyes, followed by a sweet, hearty laugh. “A dormant volcano, perhaps!”
            Gina’s hand went directly to cover her mouth and her eyes widened in surprise. “Oh, I can’t believe I just said that!”
            Elyssa reached out and touched the young girl’s shoulder. “I’ll never tell, Gina. But why do you say that?”
            “Because he’s always so controlled, holding his emotions in check. There’s nothing I gain more satisfaction from than seeing him really enjoy himself when we’re together. I’ve always longed for the day he meets someone who can bring that out in him. Not too many people have even seen him really laugh.”
            Elyssa thought back to their time at Lake Atitlan and how he seemed to really enjoy himself. Those first few times she saw him really smile -- and laugh -- warmed her heart.
That
was when she found herself drawn to him.
            Elyssa turned her attention back to Gina. “Now, tell me, what’s this about him being like a coffee bean?”
            “I think my father meant that life came too easy for him.”
            “Too easy?”
            “Easy yes, satisfying no. I’ve only just truly begun to understand what my father was trying to say. Mind you, I have always held my brother in the highest esteem; he is a man of the highest integrity. But my father knew Will would need to go through a good amount of testing to round out his character. He needs some sort of challenge in his life that will force him to fight for what he wants.”
            Gina bit her lip as she looked intently at Elyssa. “A flower easily and readily blooms into something beautiful with very little effort. I personally think my father was being a little too gracious towards me, but did you know, Elyssa, that the coffee bean needs to be dried, roasted, and ground up before it can truly be enjoyed? I think my father knew that Will would always have his wealth and position literally handed to him; even his popularity. He never had to work at making and keeping friends.”
            Gina paused and took in a deep breath. “When our father died, it was difficult for William, but he has such a natural talent for business that he stepped into the role without too much trouble. Of course he grieved our father’s loss terribly, but he threw himself into work -- I think to help him get through it.”
            Gina sighed deeply and her body trembled slightly. Elyssa reached out her hand and gently touched the young girl’s shoulder, encouraging her to continue. The thought that Will dealt with his grief this way had never occurred to her.
            Gina continued, “I think he needs to be shaken up a bit more. He can tackle anything on a business level, but is somewhat at a loss if something happens to him personally. Friendships came easy to him because he was looked up to; but not because he had an engaging personality or an abundance of enthusiasm. It was because he was a good athlete, a good student, good looking, or wealthy. Even the women who have attached themselves to him have never really brought out that spark that makes him want to work at the relationship. I think he has always been more suspicious of their professions of love because he wondered if they really ever got to know the real William Denton.”
            Gina smiled softly. “While any sort of testing would be difficult to go through, I believe it would do him a world of good. He’s only just learning there are things he will have to fight for, but he doesn’t even know how. He’s never had to before.”
            Elyssa gave Gina a shrewd smile. “Perhaps I put him through more than a little drying, roasting, and grinding while we were in Guatemala.”
            Gina looked over and met Elyssa’s eyes. “Yes, Elyssa. Perhaps you did -- in more ways than you imagine.” Gina then looked down and a slight blush crossed her face. Very softly, she said, “I think we both did.”
            “We
both
did?” Elyssa asked.
            Gina did not answer for some time. Finally, she said, “Yes. Unfortunately mine has to do with George Westham.”
            “George Westham?” Elyssa was stunned.
            Gina stood up and turned, looking down at her nervously fidgeting fingers. “George’s father worked alongside our father for as long as I remember. Our families did a lot together. I feel as though I have known him all my life; that he is as close as a brother.”
            “He told me a little about that.”
            Gina turned back and somberly faced Elyssa. “But what he probably didn’t tell you was that about a month before you went down to Guatemala, he did something that overstepped his bounds.”
            Elyssa looked at Gina thoughtfully. “What did he do?”
            “My brother and I had gone down to Guatemala. Will found himself in meetings one day from morning to night with some of the staff. It was a warm day and I remember I was just sitting outside around the pool when George came by. He said it was such a beautiful day and asked me if I would like to take a short drive out to Lake Atitlan. He called it the most romantic place in the world. What infatuated girl wouldn’t accept?”
            Elyssa closed her eyes tightly, remembering his words to her as well.
            “I’d always had a childhood crush on George and was more than willing to go with him. As we drove out, he started to pour on the charm. He told me how much he had always cared for me; how I had turned into such an attractive young lady. Of course I was flattered with his attention.”
            Elyssa stood up and walked over to Gina, putting up her hand to stop her. “Gina, I don’t need to hear anymore.”
            “No, please. Let me continue. We had eaten lunch at a restaurant in a hotel overlooking the lake. He left for a short while and when he returned, he told me he had secured a room.” Gina looked down as a blush tinted her cheeks again
            “He told me it was so that we could go swimming in the lake and then come back and change before we drove home.”
            “Did you really believe that was his sole motive?”
            Gina shook her head. “I don’t think I ever thought about whether I could trust him or not. When my cell phone rang, George told me not to answer it. I felt wrong about that, especially when I saw that it was Will. I knew he was probably looking for me. I answered my phone and, needless to say, my brother was furious when I told him where I was and who I was with. He had me put George on the phone and warned him that he better not lay a finger on me and that he wanted him to leave me right where I was and we were to wait until he arrived.” Gina looked at Elyssa with pain filling her eyes. “I should have known better.”
            “But why does he still work for your brother if he did this?” Elyssa asked in aggravation. “Why wasn’t he fired?”
            Gina let out a breath of relief. “He finally has been. William fired him a week or two ago. I think he originally let him continue working because he thought he could better keep his eye on him that way. He knew where he was and where I was. My silly little heart still held out feelings for him and I think George knew it.”
            “And now, Gina? How is your heart now?”
            “Grown up these past two months. I have seen George for who he is and my brother knows he no longer has to worry about me doing something immature like running off with him.”
            Elyssa shook her head in frustration. “I am so glad he was fired. I recently discovered that Maria, a young friend of Janet’s in Guatemala City, had become pretty enamored with him.”
            Gina reached out and took Elyssa’s hand. “Shelley was able to get the whole story from Maria. Apparently she saw George with another woman one night and he laughed at her when he saw she was so visibly upset.” Gina lowered her eyes and shook her head. “All she could think to do was call Janet. When no one answered the phone at the Blakelys’ home, she called Janet’s cell phone. They were at the lake. Maria was so upset by the whole incident, Janet insisted that they would come home immediately.”
            Elyssa began to shake with anger and grief and fell back into her chair. “That’s when the accident happened.”
            Gina nodded. “Part of Maria’s guilt was due to George planting that in her head. He told her the accident was all her fault because she acted so childishly in calling Janet. Unfortunately she chose to believe him.”
            Elyssa tightened her fingers around the armrests of the chair. “How could he do such a thing?” she cried.
            “Elyssa,” Gina said as she grew more somber. “That’s not all.”
            “What?” Elyssa asked with trepidation as she drew her hand to her chest.
            Gina knit her eyebrows together. “Will discovered that George was involved in hiring the man who took pictures of the two of you at Lake Atitlan.”
            Elyssa could feel her heart lurch as she tried to comprehend the fact that the very man who most apologetically showed her the pictures had been the one behind them all along.
            “He was responsible for those pictures on the internet?” Elyssa felt her head begin to pound and brought up her fingers to massage her temple.
            “When Will found out about the pictures, he thought it was highly unusual for someone to have recognized him there. Several celebrities frequent Panajachel, but Will would not be the most recognizable or that sought after. He hired an investigator to trace the photographs to the photographer and from there linked him to George.”
            “How can someone be so cruel? Is there no end to the man’s madness?” She turned to Gina. “I feel like… like wringing his neck!”