The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 8 letter word ADJOINED
I've seen this crossword clue in The Guardian
A
D
J
O
I
N
E
D
Buddy explains!

The straight part
We know that "Was in contact with" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case was in contact with = adjoined.The cryptic/wordplay part
In cryptic crossword there's often an wordplay/cryptic part as well.This part involves a more complex hint, such as an anagram, homophone, hidden word, etc.
Sadly, We don't have an explanation for this specific crossword clue yet.
What does ADJOINED mean?
ADJOINED verb- To be in contact or connection with.
- To extend an algebraic object (e.g. a field, a ring etc.) by adding to it (an element not belonging to it) and all finite power series of (the element).