Noah’s gaze dropped to her hands.
An uncomfortable silence stretched between them.
“I asked Jack to do a background check on you. The folder contains everything he found.”
Cassie started to speak, but the words stuck in her throat. She returned the laptop and folder to the chair. “You had me investigated?”
Noah crossed his arms in front of his chest. “Before I came to Sapphire Bay, we ran a background search on C.J. Davis. All we found was information about the jewelry you’d made in the last twelve months. When you told me your legal name, I asked Jack to find out more about you.”
“You shouldn’t have done that.” Cassie’s voice shook with anger. “What’s happened in my life is no one’s business except mine.”
“Before Wilson Enterprises presented you with the award, I wanted to know everything about you.”
“Why?”
“I manage a high-profile company. Any surprises can have an impact on my company’s performance.”
Cassie glanced at the folder. “What did Jack discover?”
Noah ran his hand around the back of his neck. “You seemed to have a normal, happy childhood in Los Angeles. It wasn’t until your dad was accused of copying another jeweler’s designs that your life changed. Tony lost his job and the cost of going to trial made him bankrupt. After the trial, you moved to San Francisco with your parents.”
Cassie waited for what came next.
“A few months later, your mom died.” Noah paused. “I’m sorry, Cassie. It must have been a difficult time.”
Her eyes filled with tears, but she didn’t say anything.
Noah picked up the folder. “You moved to Sapphire Bay about two years ago and opened your jewelry store six months later. A few months ago, you moved into a new store in Main Street and haven’t looked back.”
Relief swept through Cassie, leaving her legs weak and shaky. Noah’s brother hadn’t discovered her family was homeless, that they’d lived in shelters until they had enough money to pay rent.
Even though they’d had to rely on the kindness of strangers to survive, her mom didn’t have a bad word to say about anybody. She’d continued her chemotherapy regime and took large handfuls of drugs each day. When she died, Cassie and her dad’s world had fallen apart.
Noah handed her the folder. “You can keep this.”
“I don’t want it. I never…” Cassie’s voice broke. She wouldn’t cry, not when she had so much to lose.
Taking a deep breath, she thought carefully about what she wanted to say. “I never wanted to go to the award ceremony. I gave your secretary all the information she requested.”
“I want you to be there.”
“I can’t go. I can’t risk someone discovering who I am.” She took another deep breath. “If I stay away, there’s less chance anyone will link C.J. Davis with Cassie Harper.”
“It doesn’t matter how low the risk might be,” Noah said softly. “I need to make sure any individual or company who supplies products to my customers is beyond reproach.”
A wave of nausea rose in Cassie’s throat. “You think I’m less worthy because of what happened to my father?”
Noah’s eyes narrowed. “I don’t think any less of you, but my customers might. The artist who said his designs were copied never stopped pleading his case to the media.”
Cassie picked up her box. “I’m not accepting your award, so you won’t have to worry about what your customers think. Goodbye, Noah.” Holding her head high, she walked toward the front door, determined not to cry until she was safely inside.
“Cassie, wait.” Noah touched her shoulder.
She flinched. Embarrassment and fear brought her to a standstill. She didn’t want anyone to know what her family had gone through, especially Noah.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t come here to make you cry. I want to talk about how we can work together to fix your dad’s reputation.”
She blew her nose and turned around. “Nothing can change what happened. Dad is happy. Whatever you want to do could make everything worse.”
