The Reef

held out a hand to her. Without hesitation, she lay down beside him, curled her body to his, pillowed her head on his shoulder.
    There was one keen slice of need low in his gut. It mellowed to a dull ache as she settled her palm on his chest. He turned his face into her rain-scented hair and found a baffling mix of comfort and pain.
    Safe, lulled by trust, she let her eyes close. “It’s going to be all right. I know it’s going to be all right. I love you, Matthew.”
    She slipped into sleep as easily as a child. Matthew listened to the rain and waited for dawn.
     
    The shark shot through the water, a sleek gray bullet armed with ready teeth and a lust for blood. The water was red and roiling, choking her as she struggled to escape. She was screaming, gasping for air she couldn’t find. Those jaws opened, hideously wide. Then closed over her with a pain too excruciating to name.
    She came awake with a scream locked in her throat. Curling into a ball, she fought her way out of the nightmare. She was in Matthew’s room, she reminded herself. She was safe. He was safe.
    And she was alone.
    Lifting her head, she saw the murky sunlight just easing in the window. Panic came first that he had somehow gotten word that Buck had died, and had gone back to the hospital without her. Then she realized what she thought was rain was the shower.
    The storm was over, and Matthew was here.
    She let out a long breath, pushed at her disheveled hair. She could be grateful he hadn’t been with her when she’d had the nightmare. He was already carrying so much weight, she thought. She wouldn’t add to it. She would be brave and strong, and give him whatever support he needed.
    When the bathroom door opened, Tate had a smile ready. Despite her worries, her heart did a quick tumble at the sight of him, damp from his shower, bare chested, his jeans carelessly unfastened.
    “You’re awake.” Matthew hooked his thumbs into his front pockets and tried not to think about how she looked sitting with her arms wrapped around her knees in the middle of the bed. “I thought you might sleep awhile longer.”
    “No, I’m fine.” Suddenly awkward, she moistened her lips. “The rain stopped.”
    “I noticed.” Just as he noticed how big and soft and aware her eyes had become. “I’m going to head back to the hospital.”
    “We’re going back to the hospital,” she corrected. “I’ll go shower and change.” She was already climbing off the bed, picking up her key. “Mom said there was a coffee shop next door. I’ll meet you there in ten minutes.”
    “Tate.” He hesitated when she stopped at the door, turned back. What could he say? How could he say it? “Nothing. Ten minutes.”
    They were back at the hospital in thirty. Both Ray and Marla rose from the bench outside of CCU, where they had taken up the watch.
    They looked, Matthew thought, rumpled. It had always impressed him that no matter what the circumstances, the Beaumonts were so neatly groomed. Now, their clothes were wrinkled and limp. Ray’s face was shadowed by a night’s growth of beard. In all the weeks they’d worked together, he’d never seen Ray unshaven. For reasons Matthew couldn’t pinpoint, he focused on that one small fact. Ray hadn’t shaved.
    “They won’t tell us much,” Ray began. “Only that he had a restful night.”
    “They let us go in for a few minutes every hour.” Marla took Matthew’s hand, gave it a squeeze. “Did you get some rest, honey?”
    “Yeah.” Matthew cleared his throat. She hadn’t brushed her hair, he thought foolishly. Ray hadn’t shaved, and Marla hadn’t brushed her hair. “I want to tell both of you how much I appreciate—”
    “Don’t insult us.” Marla deliberately laced a scold into her voice. “Matthew Lassiter, you use that polite tone with that polite phrase on strangers when you feel obligated. Not with friends who love you.”
    He’d never known anyone else who could shame and touch him at the same time. “What I meant was I’m glad you’re here.”
    “I think his color’s better.” Ray put an arm around his wife, gave her a quick, warm hug. “Don’t you, Marla?”
    “Yes, I do. And the nurse said Doctor Farrge would be looking in on him shortly.”
    “Matthew and I will take over now. I want the two of you to go get some breakfast, and a little more sleep.”
    Ray studied his daughter’s face, judged her fit, and nodded. “We’ll do just that. You call the hotel if there’s