by Paula Kay
Today, when Gigi and Douglas walked into the shop, Gigi noticed Jess deep in conversation with another woman at a table in the corner.
“Gigi, Douglas, good morning. I’ll be right with you.” Jess looked up to greet them, flashing her big smile that Gigi had come to love.
“No worries. Take your time.” Douglas said as they seated themselves nearby.
After a few more minutes, Jess walked over to them with the woman that she’d been sitting with.
“Gigi, Douglas, I’d like you to meet Tori.”
Gigi thought Tori looked to be in her thirties. She wore a pair of overalls and had her long dark hair pulled back in a loose bun on top of her head.
Tori reached out to greet them with a strong handshake and Gigi instantly liked her.
“Would you like to join us? Please sit down.” Douglas stood up to pull the empty chair out for her.
“Thank you.” Tori’s smile lit up her whole face. “I don’t mind if I do.”
“Where are you from, Tori?” Douglas asked.
“I’m from the Bay Area, but I’ve not been back there for several years.”
“Really? That’s where we’re from too,” Gigi said.
“How funny. What brings you to Antigua? Are you doing a language course, here on vacation?” Tori asked.
Gigi and Douglas looked at one another and it was Douglas who spoke next. “We’re here doing a volunteer program with one of the orphanages.”
Jess had arrived with their coffees and Gigi was pretty sure that she saw a quick look pass between the two women at the mention of the orphanage. They’d already spoken to Jess about it when they’d first met her, and they both felt that she’d been holding something back regarding her opinion of Loretta and Frank, whom she did know of.
“Place of Hope?” Tori asked.
“Yes, that’s it. Do you know it?” Gigi said.
“Yep, I sure do.” Tori laughed.
Gigi saw the question on Douglas’s face, and Tori seemed to catch it also as she continued.
“I also volunteered there. Four years ago—when I first arrived.”
“I sense a story coming,” Douglas said.
“Well, it’s not so much a story about my time there. Let’s just say that it wasn’t for me.”
Gigi and Douglas looked at one another and Gigi spoke next.
“We’re not sure if it’s for us either, honestly.” She sighed. “We’ve been trying to make it work and of course we feel committed to what we signed up for, but—” She looked at Douglas, hoping he’d jump in with something appropriate to say.
“It’s just not turning out to be what we thought it would be—mostly in terms of the interaction with the children, which is what Gigi had really been looking forward to the most.”
Tori had been nodding her head while Douglas spoke, and Gigi guessed that there was a lot more that could be said about the orphanage, but she was intrigued by this woman and wanted to know more about her time here.
“So, Tori, you said that you’d been away from the Bay Area for years? Have you been traveling all of that time?”
“Oh, no. I’ve actually been here in Guatemala. Like you two, I came to volunteer with Place of Hope, but now I’m working with a different orphanage—I have been for the past four years or so.”
“Really? Is it here in Antigua?” Gigi felt her heart beat faster as she reached for Douglas’s hand beside her. She didn’t need to say out loud what she was thinking. She knew that he’d be well aware of how exciting this conversation was to her.
“No. It’s a place in the jungle—on the river—the Rio Dulce. It’s called Casa de los Niños and it’s run by a fantastic Guatemalan woman named Silvia.”
“The Children’s House,” Gigi said, grinning at Douglas. “Is that not the best name?”
Douglas winked and squeezed her hand under the table. “Please tell us about this other orphanage.”
Tori went on to tell the story of how she’d met another volunteer who took her to Casa de los Niños for the first time—about her meeting with the Guatemalan woman who’d given her entire life to creating a home for the orphaned children of Guatemala. Even as she told the story, the tears were streaming down her face and Gigi felt her own tears threatening to come.
“And, well—as they say, the rest is history. The place—those kids—have had my heart ever since.” Tori was wiping her eyes and grinning broadly.
Gigi could hardly speak for all of the emotion she was feeling, but she had to find out more.
“Are you going back?” she finally managed to ask Tori.
“Oh, yes. I’m only in town now to talk to Jess about a fundraiser that she’s doing for the orphanage next month. I’ll be leaving to go back Sunday.”
Gigi shot Douglas a look, hoping she’d see something on his face that would give her the go-ahead. He smiled, nodding for her to continue.
“Can we go with you? On Sunday?”
Tori grinned, and her look said it all. “Yes, of course you can. I do need to warn you, though—”
Gigi felt her heart drop momentarily. “Oh, does she even want more volunteers right now? I suppose you need to check with her first, which we understand.”
Douglas was nodding his agreement.
Tori was laughing. “Oh no. Trust me, we need all the help we can get. There’s only Silvia, me, and a handful of other volunteers right now. So, as you can imagine, we have our hands full. It’s just that I feel the need to let you know that the accommodations and—well, really everything—it’s quite basic. Nothing at all like what you have at Place of Hope.” She seemed to be studying them intently, waiting for their reaction.
Gigi said, “I’m sure that I’m okay with all of that. It sounds like what I was expecting before I arrived, so I’d already mentally prepared myself for much less than what we’ve had so far.” She laughed, thinking that for the first time since they’d started working there, she felt excited again.
“And jungle living is not like what you have here. Just laying it all out there. The nearest restaurant is a thirty-minute ride by boat, so we spend most of our time on the grounds with the kids. We have all of our meals together. We do have teachers there right now, but often the volunteers will jump in to help out while the younger kids are napping. So it really is a very big commitment of time.”
Gigi felt Douglas’s eyes on her and guessed that he had something to say. She didn’t want to put him on the spot, but it seemed like some decisions would have to be made rather quickly if they were going to go with Tori in just two days.
“What are you thinking, honey?” Gigi said to him.
“Well, I just think that we need to be careful about our commitment here too—that we at least need to have a conversation with Loretta and Frank before we go heading off to spend time with another organization.”
Gigi felt her face fall. Douglas was right, and she knew how he felt about honoring commitments. But they both also knew that they weren’t really needed at Place of Hope, not physically anyways, although she guessed that Loretta and Frank were counting on a large donation before they left. Even the thought of it left her feeling bad.
Douglas was quick to interrupt her thoughts. “But yes, darling. I absolutely want to go to check this other place out. It sounds like everything you wanted when we signed up for this little adventure.” He laughed and then turned toward Tori as he continued. “Do you think it would be possible for us to come for a few days, maybe a week or so? Or does Silvia require more of a commitment than that.”
“As I said, Silvia will just be happy to have you there, period. For as long as you like. I’ll phone her tonight to give her a heads-up. Why don’t I give you my contact info? You two can have the conversations that you need to have and let me know by tomorrow night if you’ll be joining me. How does that sound?”
“Perfect,” Gigi said with enthusiasm as they all got up from the table. She followed her gut instinct, being a hugger, and walked around the small t
able to give Tori a big hug goodbye. “Tori, I can’t even tell you how happy I am for having met you today. I feel like this was meant to be.”
Tori grinned back at her. “Me too. I’m a big believer in fate myself and my gut hasn’t let me down yet. And right now it’s telling me that I’m going to be seeing a lot more of you two very soon.” She laughed. “But no pressure or anything.”
Douglas took the paper from Tori with her contact details on it, and they said a big goodbye and thank you to Jess before leaving the little cafe.
Once alone outside on the sidewalk, Gigi grabbed Douglas’s hand and pulled him in for a big kiss. “Oh, honey. Do you have any idea how excited I am right now?”
“I do. Yes.” He winked, pulling her to him for another kiss. “I have a good feeling about this, love.”
Gigi had a good feeling about it too.
They made their way hand-in-hand back to the orphanage, Gigi lost in her thoughts about what lay ahead for them, unable to keep the huge grin off her face. The great adventure, phase two, was about to begin!
Chapter 16
Gigi looked over at Douglas, who was waiting patiently for her as she got ready for the meeting that they had scheduled with Loretta and Frank. Frank had been away for the past few days, and they’d hardly seen Loretta either once they’d gotten into the swing of things with Sarah and the other volunteers. They were both feeling slightly apprehensive about telling them that they were going to leave for a week to check out Casa de los Niños, but they’d discussed it at length between them and decided that it was best to be honest about it.
When they’d mentioned the orphanage to Sarah earlier in the day, they weren’t shocked to learn that she’d heard of it, and they also guessed that there could be a little bit of friction between the two organizations. They suspected that Loretta and Frank wouldn’t be pleased, but they couldn’t worry about that too much. They’d already decided that they’d be gone for one week and then come back to work another two weeks at Place of Hope. They were also sure that, no matter what, they’d not leave without giving a donation of some sort to the organization that first captured their interest and their hearts all those months ago.
Place of Hope might not have turned out to be what they’d thought it would be, but they still did see a lot of good happening as a result of the organization and efforts of Loretta and Frank.
Gigi sighed as she made her way over to where Douglas sat reading on the small sofa.
He looked at his watch as she sat down beside him.
“Are you about ready, love?”
Gigi nodded. “I am. I’m just anxious to get this all settled so that we can call Tori and finalize our plans.”
“Are you nervous? About talking to Loretta and Frank, I mean?” Douglas said.
“No, I feel confident with our decision. Are you?” She didn’t really need to ask him. Douglas rarely wavered once he’d made a decision, especially about something that had caused a certain amount of friction, which had been the case with Loretta and Frank thus far.
“Not in the slightest.” Douglas reached into his briefcase beside the sofa and pulled out his checkbook. “I think I am going to write a check today. I’m guessing it might go a long ways with any bad feelings that might come up. Not to say that they won’t understand, but just in case.”
“Well, we do know that they’ve been expecting something from us.” Gigi looked at Douglas for a few seconds.
“What is it, love?”
“We do feel good about it, don’t we? Giving them the donation, I mean?”
“I think so. Yes. As much as I’ve not agreed with how everything is being portrayed or run, I don’t think that there’s anything shady going on. Do I think it’s much different than how things would be if you and I were running the show around here?” Douglas laughed at the look Gigi sent his way.
“Are you planning on running some things here in Guatemala now, darling?” Gigi winked, enjoying their banter. They certainly did make a very good team—she and her husband.
“No, but you know what I mean. Just in terms of motivation and all.”
“I know. Yes, I’d say that they are doing a good thing for these kids, regardless of how they get there. One can hardly argue with the fact that they want them to have good educations and get the best start in life that is possible for them.” Gigi agreed. “And leave me to get on with huggin’ on some babies now.”
Douglas stood up, laughing as he pulled Gigi up to stand beside him. “Well, from what Tori described to us yesterday, it sounds like you’ll have more than your share of little ones to cuddle.”
“I can’t wait.” Gigi could hardly stop smiling whenever she thought about what was in store for them.
Douglas leaned in to kiss her. “I can’t wait to see you with them, darling.” He took her hand again as he started towards the door. “Let’s not keep Loretta and Frank waiting.”
An hour or so later, Gigi was humming back in their room as she packed up a small suitcase. Their talk with Loretta and Frank had gone better than she ever would have expected, and the whole thing left her feeling more positive about the couple and their organization than she’d felt since their arrival.
Loretta had said that she understood the draw of Silvia’s orphanage and what she was doing in the jungle—that she and Frank had been there themselves and had great admiration for the woman. She stressed that it would be a totally different experience for Gigi and Douglas, in terms of the accommodation and how they’d be living for the next week, but Gigi had assured her that she was ready for something different.
The couple had told Gigi and Douglas that they’d keep their room for them and to go ahead and leave anything behind that they didn’t want to take with them. They had even given their blessing in releasing them from their volunteer commitment if they felt that it wasn’t what they were looking for. Gigi did notice that this was after Douglas had handed them the sizable check that he’d written for the organization, but she wasn’t going to dwell on any bad thoughts now.
She and Douglas were committed to returning, and they both felt comfortable with the week’s commitment in the jungle. Time would tell what would happen after that, and even though she was excited about the differences, Gigi did imagine that it could be an adjustment; she didn’t want to pretend that it would all be easy, as much as she liked to think that she was ready for the adventure that jungle living promised.
Douglas had called Tori to let her know that they were all set to make the journey with her the next day. They agreed to meet at Jess’s cafe in the morning, and Tori had a minivan coming to pick them up there. The drive to the river could take anywhere from five to six hours and then the orphanage would be another thirty minutes by boat. Tori had sounded very pleased and excited for them when they’d spoken, and Gigi couldn’t wait to spend more time with the younger woman. Something about her really drew Gigi in, and she had the feeling that there would end up being a genuine connection there.
From the moment Gigi and Douglas walked into Jess’s cafe the next morning, she felt something shift inside her. Jess and Tori looked to be deep in conversation when the couple entered the shop, and Gigi loved the excitement that she could hear in their voices. It was hard to describe, but it was a certain passion that had been evident from the moment she’d first met the two women. It was the passion that she, herself, had been craving in her life.
“Don’t let us interrupt you,” Douglas called out as he and Gigi picked up the coffees that Jess had waiting for them at the nearby table.
“Oh no. You’re not interrupting at all,” Tori called out. “Jess and I are just going over some details for the art show next month. Some of the older kids from the orphanage have a few pieces that are going to be featured.”
“How lovely,” Gigi said.
Tori had shared with them earlier that they’d had a volunteer the year before who was an art teacher. She’d spent hours doing art with the kids and teaching them some skills. Since
then, a few of the older children had really blossomed as young artists. Tori and Silvia had been working to get their art featured at a few places around town, starting with the show at Jess’s shop.
“Sit, enjoy your coffee.” Jess was up from the table and heading behind the counter. “I have some fresh bagels here. You have a bit of a journey ahead, so I figured you might want something to take with you for the trip.”
“Thank you. You’re too kind to us,” Douglas said as he took the bag from Jess.
“We’re so thankful for having found this place—for having met both of you,” Gigi said, trying to keep her tears from coming. She’d been feeling a little emotional lately, but in a good way—not in a way that had her feeling sad and confused, as was the case prior to leaving for Guatemala.
Somehow she just really believed that they were in the right place—that the timing of everything was perfect and just as it should be.
“It looks like our ride is here,” Tori said, interrupting Gigi’s thoughts. “Are you two ready?” Tori’s grin was wide, and Gigi thought again how lucky they were for having met her.
“I’m ready. Are you, darling?” Douglas said as he got up from the table.
“Yes. I’m so ready,” Gigi reached for Douglas’s hand.
The three carried their bags out to the minivan and Tori introduced the couple to Juan, their driver, whom Tori said she knew quite well from having taken the trip with him many times before.
Gigi settled back against the seat, ready for the long drive, content to watch out the window and see more of the country. Douglas took her hand and they fell into any easy silence for the first few hours or so of the journey.