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“I guess that would make sense.” I nodded slowly. “He definitely has a good reason to hate me, right?”
“But you interviewed him for the paper, didn’t you?” Michaela interjected. “And you said that was totally fine.”
“Well, duh, he’s not going to openly tell her that he’s planning to blow up her life,” Tate said, rolling his eyes.
“True.” Michaela pursed her lips. “I guess Paxton does make the most sense for all of this bullshit. Or a crazy fan, like you said.”
Relief coursed through my veins. Finally, finally, someone else believed that Paxton could be capable of fucking with my life.
“What do you think I should do about it?” I asked.
“I’m not sure. I’d need to think about it,” Tate said. “For now, I think it’s more important that we focus on your financial situation. I still can’t believe your dad cut you off like that.”
I shrugged glumly. “It is what it is, I guess.”
“Well, if you can’t afford to pay for this dorm next semester, you can always come and stay with me,” he said. “My dad actually told me that I’m welcome to get a roommate whenever I want, so it’ll be fine. Plus I know you love my cat.”
“Ooh, that’s a good idea. Your place is so close to campus. And it’s big,” Michaela said. “For an apartment, anyway.”
Tate nodded. “Yeah. Also, it’d be nice to have someone there. Living alone kinda sucks,” he said. He paused and rubbed his chin. “So… yeah. You’re welcome to live with me for as long as you want. No rent. Just buy me a beer every so often and we’ll call it even.”
“Thanks so much. That really means a lot.” I smiled and reached out to hug him. “You’re seriously the best.”
He hugged me back, one hand patting my left arm. Then he pulled away and grabbed his phone. “Also…” he said, pausing for dramatic effect as he tapped on the screen. “There. I sent you something.”
“Sent me what?”
“Two grand to your PayPal account. To pay for stuff until you get back on your feet. Like food, your phone bill, or whatever.”
My eyes widened. “Tate, no. I can’t take money from you.”
“But you need it, and I have it. A lot of it. So why not?”
“It’s just… it doesn’t feel right. I’m sending it back,” I said, pulling out my phone. “Thanks for the offer, but I really can’t accept it.”
“Sienna, come on! You’re my best friend. I can’t watch you starve to death.”
I smiled. “I won’t starve. I have some money pre-loaded on my dining hall card, remember?”
“That’s not enough. Seriously. Not if you want three meals a day.”
“Hold on.” Michaela lifted her hand to interrupt. “What about all the work you did on that retreat in New Zealand? I mean, you were helping with some sort of farm work, right?”
“Yes, but that was part of the therapy. So I wasn’t paid for it.”
“So you paid them to do a ton of work for them?” She rolled her eyes. “What a scam.”
“It helped me a lot.”
“I know. I’m just saying, it would’ve been nice if they compensated you in some way for all the free labor.”
“Maybe, but it’s water under the bridge now,” Tate said, waving a hand. “I’m not taking no for an answer, Sienna. You’re taking the money from me, and that’s final.”
I gave him a small smile. “Fine. But I’ll pay it back as soon as I can. I promise.”
“I know you will. But for now, don’t worry about it.”
Michaela snatched her phone out of her pocket. “I’m sending you a little something too.”
