  We examine the decay of the 3.03 MeV state of $^8$Be evaporated from an
excited projectile-like fragment following a peripheral heavy-ion collision.
The relative energy of the daughter $\alpha$ particles exhibits a dependence on
the decay angle of the $^8$Be$^*$, indicative of a tidal effect. Comparison of
the measured tidal effect with a purely Coulomb model suggests the influence of
a measurable nuclear proximity interaction.
