Colleague in Germany happened to have short skirts (9)
I believe the answer is:
bedfellow
'colleague' is the definition.
(I've seen this before)
'germany happened to have short skirts' is the wordplay.
'germany' becomes 'd' (international vehicle registration code).
'happened to' becomes 'befell' (I've seen this before).
'have' becomes 'own' (synonyms).
'short' means to remove the last letter.
'skirts' indicates putting letters inside.
'befell'+'own'='befellown'
'befellown' with its last letter taken away is 'befellow'.
'd' inserted inside 'befellow' is 'BEDFELLOW'.
'in' is the link.
(Other definitions for bedfellow that I've seen before include "Partner (in the boudoir?)" , "Person slept with" , "Colleague" , "Mate" , "Close associate or partner" .)