Tom arrived in the early hours of the morning and crept into Reese's room, where she lay awake, staring at the wall, back to the door. She didn't turn around when she heard him come in, or even as he settled down beside her and wrapped an arm around her waist.

He said nothing, even as she began to sob quietly into her pillow, he kissed her chin, burrowed his face into her neck and hugged her tighter. Slowly, she let his warmth wash over her, even through her damp clothes, and sleep came to them both.

Reese woke around seven and found she was shivering. The sheets beneath her were cold and wet, as was her dress, but she couldn't bring herself to move. Tom must have sensed her shaking, however, because she felt the bed sag as he stood to walk around to her side. He grabbed both of her shoulders and sat her up, where she could fully drink him in for the first time since the previous night.

His hair was ruffled and he had dark circles etched under his eyes. He wore jeans and a white shirt, which was soaked in the front from laying against Reese all night, and he wore a tired expression, not happy, not sad, just accepting, maybe waiting to see what Reese was feeling before deciding how he should be feeling himself.

He moved quickly, guiding Reese's arms above her head so he could work her wet dress off her. He threw it in a sopping heap behind him, then leaned forward to slip off her bra and toss that aside as well. Reese felt the slack of her breasts, cold and numb, fall free in front of Tom's face, but he hardly gave them a second glance. Instead, he walked back around, tugging off his own shirt as he did so, crawled back into bed, and brought the covers up to their chins. He wrapped his arms once more around Reese, one around her waist, the other under between her side and the bed. And then he held her to him.

It wasn't arousing or anything like the previous night, but it was comforting. Something about the skin-to-skin contact soothed Reese slightly, and as he rubbed her arms and stomach and legs, working the feeling back into them, she felt a flicker of life in the pit of her chest.

He did this for a good twenty minutes before Reese finally worked up the strength to turn over and face him. Tom allowed himself a small smile at this and pulled her close so her chest was pressed up against his. He kissed her nose, pulled her head down to rest in the crook of his neck, and closed his eyes. Reese fell back into sleep, the sound of his breathing, of his chest, rising and falling softly, lulling her into darkness.

***

For the next few days, Reese spent her time wandering the house aimlessly, making damn well sure she didn't go anywhere near her father's room. Lily stuck around to make breakfast, or occasionally ask Reese if she'd like to go for a walk or to the store. These offers would be met with grunts or silent no's, mostly communicated by shaking her head. She knew she just needed time to process things, mull everything over in her mind.

Tom had been a saint, sleeping with her every night, blankets pulled tightly around them, getting her up at the same time every morning, coaxing her out on walks. By the end of two weeks, Reese was beginning to feel a lot better.

They were sitting at the kitchen table one morning, Reese wrapped in a thick woolen sweater, legs pulled up to her chest, Tom beside her, lazily scanning a newspaper. Lily had gone shopping. The house was quiet, save for the tender crackling of the fire in the living room.

"I think I have to sell the house," Reese said suddenly, startling Tom out of his trance, buried deep in the world news section.

"What?"

Reese sighed. "This house. I'm going to sell it." She knew the only reason they'd hung on to it for so long was that her father couldn't stand to part with it, and now, with all the bad memories overwhelmingly outweighing the good, she wasn't sure how much longer she could even stand to look at it.

"If it helps, then do it," Tom said sternly, putting down his paper. "If it hurts to hold onto his house, you shouldn't keep it."

Reese stared at him, feeling a huge wave of gratitude wash over her. She'd never met someone so supportive, so kind, so willing to do anything to make another person happy. Unable to say anything, Reese simply reached over and took his hand, which he squeezed gently, and went back to his paper.

They sat like that for what felt like hours, hand-in-hand, Reese running her thumb up and down his palm. It was soothing, and she felt her eyes begin to drift closed, only for them to snap open again at the sound of the doorbell. That was one thing she would miss, the sound of that bell echoing through the wooden entryway. It was old and reminded her of when her father would come home late from work and more often than not forget his keys. Her and Elliot would race to let him in.

Tom watched her go instead, slowly to the door, as she hesitantly twisted the doorknob and swung it open.

The woman standing in front of her looked cross, her short hair done and pinned so many times her head was more clip than actual hair. High heels. Large purse. Pursed lips.

"M-mom?"

"Reese, honey." She stepped in without waiting for an invitation, reaching out to caress Reese's face in her freshly manicured hands. "I'm so, so sorry."

Reese felt her eyes begin to water, despite herself, and let her mother pull her into a hug. They held each other, her mother stroking her hair, daughter crying quietly into her shoulder. Reese heard Tom stand up and leave upstairs, most likely thinking it was best to give them some privacy.

"Thank you, mom," Reese whispered. They pulled apart, her mom smiling sadly as she took in Reese's tear-stained face.

"Of course, dear. I can't imagine what you're going through. And when I heard the news... I had no idea what to do with myself. I came down as soon as I could."

"What about... your boyfriend. Does he mind?" Reese asked, leading her mother into the living room to sit beside her on the couch.

"Ryan doesn't mind, no. God... Reese, I don't even know what to say."

"Me either," Reese sniffed. "I miss him."

Her mother ended up staying for a few hours, talking, making tea, rubbing Reese's back when her eyes began to water again. And Reese eventually mustered up the courage to tell her mom of her plans to sell the house.

"Really?" A pause as she sipped her tea. "Well, I think that's a fine idea."

She even offered to help, saying she'd known she hadn't done enough in the past, and Reese would do better to sit this one out.

"You can't do everything yourself!" she'd protested.

"Now, of course not, but I can get Elliot down here, he's just finished his honeymoon, and Ryan will help me hire some guys to move things out, I'm sure."

"Mom..."

"No, Reese, I need this. And you do too. Why don't you go on a trip with your boyfriend? Relax a little? Being held up in this house isn't going to do anything for your health."

Reese didn't even have the energy to protest that Tom wasn't her boyfriend (she wasn't quite sure what he was, but he definitely wasn't a boyfriend), and just sank back.

"What about... the funeral...?" She could barely get the words out and earned nothing but another sympathetic smile from her mother. It was something she'd been unable to shake from her mind for days. The planning, the black... it just made everything seem too real.

"We'll worry about that later. You need to take some time for yourself."

As much as Reese hated to admit it, time away from the house sounded wonderful. Away from her father's empty room and the photographs of him on the wall and his discarded cane and his rocking chair. Away from every hint of him and the things he'd forgotten. The things he'd left behind.

At last, she stood up, and they said their goodbyes, her mother leaving her with "I'll be back tomorrow morning with some guys. Now I'll call your brother, and you'd better be gone in the morning, got it?"

And then she was out the door, and Reese ran up the stairs to talk to Tom, feeling excitement bubbling up in her chest for the first time in weeks.

Bright and early the next morning they were on the road. Tom had agreed the previous night to go anywhere she wanted without a second thought. He was hers, and at the drop of a hat, they could go anywhere.

As they drove, Reese pushed all thoughts of her father and the house from her mind. If she started obsessing over it again, she knew she would have another breakdown and had no idea how long it would last. Right now, it was just her and Tom and the possibilities were endless.

"Do you have an idea for a hotel?" Tom asked once on the highway, reaching over to take her hand.

"I was thinking fancy," she said, grinning. "You know, twenty-four-hour room service, a pool, the whole package."

"Sounds great." He brought her hand up and kissed her knuckles lightly. She shivered and gave his hand a squeeze. Hell, even the lightest touch sent Reese's brain spinning out of control without any point of return. And she found she was okay with it.

They rolled into town about an hour later, having decided last minute on a hotel by the water, mostly because it was the only one they found find that didn't require booking a room beforehand. Reese hadn't even had time to pack, let alone look into hotels ahead of time. She'd dragged Tom out of bed at four thirty in the morning (she'd hardly slept the night before) and they'd jumped in the car and were on their way.

Checking in was easy, as they had no luggage, and they wandered up to their room immediately. It was still dark, not even six yet, and as they pushed inside, they stumbled over each other until Tom found the lights, laughing the whole way. It was big, much bigger than their last room in Washington, big bathroom, big closet, but the thing that stood out the most was the single king-sized bed sitting in the center, almost tantalizingly. Reese felt her face flush as she remembered back to the night of their first kiss, and how quickly it had escalated. Caught up in a whirlwind of emotions and the warmth of half a bottle of wine, the whole night had been a rush of... she wasn't quite sure what. But, even now, calm and completely sober, all Reese could think about was Tom standing beside her, the heat of his body, the little loving hand squeezes and hip bumps. He drove her crazy and used that power in the worst possible ways.

"We should go swimming," he said suddenly. "The pool's open early."

Reese sighed and stepped into the room, kicking off her shoes. "I don't have a bathing suit, Tom."

"Neither do I," he said, smiling wickedly. Reese felt herself go red again and shook her head vigorously.

"No, Tom, there are people down there. It's a public pool-"

"Reese, darling, it's half past five in the morning. No one in their right mind is going to be down there." He grabbed her hand and pulled her towards the door.

"Well... we're not in our right minds."

"That's because you're so beautiful I can hardly think around you," Tom said simply, opening the door. Reese found herself at a loss for words at this (how could he just blurt those things out?), but let him drag her back down the stairs, to the pool the desk clerk had informed them was down the hall and to the right.

He'd been right in assuming there would be no one down there. It was completely deserted, dark and echoey, and Reese's eyes went straight to the hot tub in the corner. As if he'd read her mind, Tom guided her over, and they stood at the edge.

"What now?" Reese asked quietly, taking her hand from Tom to wipe in on her jeans.

"Strip," he said, grasping the bottom of his shirt and pulling it over his head. Reese's eyes widened and she backed away slightly.

"E-excuse me?"

"Well you can't very well go swimming in your clothes, can you?" He stepped out of his pants and now stood before her in only his boxer briefs. Reese's skin felt delightfully warm. He saw her hesitate and moved to set a hand on her shoulder. "C'mon, Reese. Be spontaneous with me."

Smiling, she hesitantly stripped off her shirt and pants, taking the time to fold them neatly on the plastic table beside the pool, very consciously aware of Tom's raking stare. But by the time she'd turned around, he was slipping into the bubbling water. She followed, into the foam and the heat. They sat together, Reese tiling her head back and dipping her hair into the water. It bubbled and fizzed in her ears, and she started to feel calmer already. And then she felt Tom slid his hands onto her back and she tensed for a minute, then relaxed as he began to rub, chuckling huskily as he did so.

This thumbs dug into her shoulder blades, running up her neck and all the way down to her lower back, just below her waist. She held in a sigh, tilting her head back more until it was resting against his chest. If she hadn't been sitting down, her knees would've already given out.

She almost gasped in surprise as his lips hit her shoulder, tracing the same path as his fingers. He sucked her neck as his hands worked lower, then rose again until they were at her bra strap. She felt him fumble, then the clasp was loose and it fell away. Tom slipped it off her shoulders, not lifting his mouth, but moved his hands to her chest, where he grasped each breast in his hands.

Reese felt her eyes glaze over, and a familiar fog settle over her brain at his touch. He moved with his lips, squeezing, caressing with his hands, those magic hands, two fingers caressing her nipples. This man... she couldn't even think around him. He was... he was... she had no words for what Tom was.

Tom was an angel, a being too precious, too kind for this world. He knew how to comfort her and listen to her, while simultaneously being incredibly sexy and caring. Gentle. Honest. Kind. Great kisser. All those words. Too many to make sense. And Reese decided, as Tom spun her around to face him, so she was practically sitting on his lap, she didn't need to think anymore. In fact, she needed to stop thinking. Instead, she found his lips, his needy pink mouth, and kissed him deeply while his fingers danced in her hair.

Eventually, Tom moved his hands from her head and dipped them below the water, stopping at her thighs, grasping either side of her panties and slowly peeled them off, then moved to take off his own boxers, so they were left stark naked, hidden only by the foam surfacing on the water.

Reese tangled her fingers in his hair, bracing herself as she felt the hard warmth of him press against her navel. She felt him push her underwear past her knees and then he was touching her, truly, for the first time, and she felt a sudden surge of emotions. Amidst the waves of pleasure and tingling, she felt... sad. It wasn't until she tasted salt on his lips she realized she was crying, and Tom pulled back immediately.

"Reese?" he asked, voice hoarse. "What's wrong, sweet? Did I hurt you?" She could only shake her head, shoulders trembling.

And with him holding her in his lap, his heat almost swallowing her up, she cried like a baby. For Tom. For her father. For all the things she'd felt in the past month that had been tangled up in a confusing mass of webs. And he rocked her, her head on his chest, she sobbed against him as he stroked her hair and kissed her forehead and Reese let loose everything she'd kept buried deep in her stomach.

Unable to speak. Unable to breathe. Unable to think. And there was Tom.