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He looked down at who she was assuming was his sister. “Shhh, Bella doesn’t need to know about that.”

“Your secrets are safe with me,” she said, winking.

She turned and went into Zander’s office and pretended that she didn’t see Colson go with Bella into Regan’s office.

She’d never tell her daughter she saw Colson here. But she’d seen Colson flush when she brought up Marly’s name. Maybe her daughter wasn’t the only one feeling something as an adult.

“Are you going to wait for me?” Bella asked when he opened the door to Regan Philes-Conway’s office.

“Yeah. It’s only a forty-five-minute session, right?” he asked.

“Yes,” Bella said. “Do you have to meet with Regan?”

“Nope, it’s just you.” They were only coming once every few months now. He’d lost track of the appointment and was thankful for the auto reminders.

Bella checked in and he moved to take a seat.

“Who was that woman?” Bella asked. “You called her Judge Conway.”

“Because she’s a judge.”

“So you’ve seen her in court.”

“I have. Not since she’s been a judge. She was the DA until recently and I’ve testified in a lot of her cases.”

“And her daughter. Marly? Is that someone you dated?” Bella asked.

Good lord. It took everything in him not to flush when Marly’s name came up.

He’d spent two days replaying the scene in the courthouse in his brain.

Nothing made sense. He stopped trying to have it.

“Yes,” he said.

“When?” Bella asked.

He didn’t want to say when he was thirteen.

He didn’t need to open that can again.

“Bella,” Miles, the assistant, said. “You can go in now.”

Bella got up and he pulled his phone out to kill the time.

“Perfect timing,” Miles said when he sat behind his desk. “You can thank me for saving your butt over a confession.”

Colson snorted. “You’re damn straight.”

He’d talked to the guy enough while he waited for Bella. The dude was always in some bright color clothing and today was no different in a patterned silk jeweled-colored shirt, the top two buttons undone. He noticed burgundy pants when Miles stood up.

“She seems to be so much better than when she came in two years ago.”

“Thank God,” he said. “Not sure when to stop the sessions. As long as she needs it, she can have it.”

“And saves you some of the uncomfortable conversations,” Miles said.

“Not really,” he said rolling his eyes. “Almost makes her feel more confident to ask more. Which I want. I really do.”