Page 7 of Fierce-Colson

TIME HAD BEEN GOOD

“Marly,” Scott said from the doorway. “Detective Ryder is in the conference room. I went over everything with him, but you’ll probably want to confirm it yourself.”

Marly Conway didn’t look up right away. She finished the note she was scribbling, capped her pen, then lifted her gaze to the ADA who now occupied the office she’d vacated when she won the election by a landslide.

Newly appointed District Attorney of Durham County.

The words still felt solid. Earned through sweat and stress and too many sleepless nights.

Had she believed she’d win? Absolutely. She’d had the résumé, the endorsements, and yes—her mother’s legacy as the previous DA. Not to mention the quiet support of the Durham PD and the fact that her father had retired as a captain.

She didn’t apologize for any of it. She accepted it and was thankful and took it with grace, but didn’t rely on it.

Her ten-year plan was exactly where it was supposed to be.

That was hers. All hers.

“I’ll be there in a minute,” she said.

Scott nodded and disappeared.

Colson Ryder.

She exhaled slowly, once. Controlled. Measured. Then let a smile slip through before she could stop herself, and took another breath.

He wasn’t the boy she’d dated for nearly two years anymore. Middle school into freshman year. Back then, he was young, honest and uncomplicated. Their relationship hadn’t crashed or burned. It hadn’t fizzled out in betrayal or hurt feelings.

It had simply ended. They’d wanted different things even then.

He’d wanted friends, fun, sports, and attention. She’d wanted a transcript that opened doors to her future.

But they’d remained friends during those school years, and the longing she’d had in her heart for him stayed hidden with the acceptance that life moves on.

Then when he ended up on the force and they crossed paths that first time, they joked about the good old days as if time hadn’t existed.

It’d never been anything more than that in most people’s eyes.

Young love for her. A bit of hurt that she decided to end things, but knew that she was too young to look at forever.

Seemed he wasn’t having such good luck in that department himself.

She knew he’d been married and divorced.

She thought she’d heard he’d been engaged another time but refused to ask anyone else for details.

She was more about the facts, and gossip about an old boyfriend wasn’t her thing.

Marly gathered her files and stood. This was her first major case as DA that was coming to an end. One she’d taken over from her mother. The evidence was airtight. DNA. Victim testimony. A pattern no defense attorney could explain away and she was positive they weren’t even going to attempt it.

Still, she didn’t walk into court or a conference room without checking every angle. Balancing every square and tracing every circle multiple times.

She lifted her shoulders and pushed open the door, prepared to face down her old school boyfriend.

Colson sat at the table, his phone in his hand, his brow furrowed in concentration. He looked up quickly and set it aside, his features changing as if on automatic.

Back to the boy, who was now a man, that she remembered.

“Is everything okay?” she asked.