How could I possibly end up marrying Veronica?

I could not help lifting my head and looking toward the stage. She stood there with a cold expression; Veronica in the flesh.

This meeting was focused on the company’s performance from the previous quarter. She was extremely dissatisfied with the results.

As I looked over at her, my gaze was caught midair. When she noticed, I hurriedly looked away. Even so, that small movement immediately drew her attention.

"Andrew Cole, if I remember correctly, your team’s performance last quarter was near the bottom again, wasn’t it? Is this how you lead a team?" She launched straight into criticizing me.

I lowered my head and said nothing, but the dissatisfaction in my chest was already overflowing.

Our team’s performance last quarter was actually decent. Her standards were simply too high. She nitpicked every little thing.

I cursed silently to myself. Whoever ended up with a boss like this was truly unlucky.

Inside, I was wailing.

I glanced down at my phone. If I ever married a woman like this, I would have to be out of my mind, or have suffered serious brain damage. Otherwise, who would willingly sign up for this kind of torment?

How could this cold, arrogant, evil CEO possibly send messages like that, calling me "dear" and "hubby" and all that?

Just looking at those messages, then comparing them to Veronica’s face right now, made everything feel unreal.

I even shivered before I quickly sent a reply. "There is a limit to a person’s patience. How could you possibly be Veronica Starling?"

"Hubby, how do you want me to prove it to you?

"Hubby, come back soon. I want to play the lifting-you-up game with you…"

Her messages came one after another.

I shook my head helplessly as I read them.

Then I asked her something extremely private. There was one time when I had accompanied Veronica to meet a client. She drank too much that night, and I was the one who had taken her home.

That night, she sang all kinds of strange songs. She even insisted on carrying an elderly woman who had just crossed the street back across it again, chanting nonstop, "Grandma, I’ll carry you across the road."

In the end, the old woman had no choice. A traffic officer nearby had to step in and repeatedly explain and persuade Veronica before she finally gave up.

After sobering up, Veronica clearly remembered the incident and warned me not to tell anyone about it. So this was something only she and I knew.

I asked about it cautiously.

A reply came almost immediately. "Hubby, don’t bring that up. It’s really embarrassing. That night I insisted on carrying the old woman across the road…"

She briefly described what happened. It matched what had occurred that night almost exactly.

At that point, I was certain that the person messaging me really was Veronica from the future. That realization was absurd beyond belief.

"Hubby, this is our secret. You’re not allowed to tell anyone else."

Just as I was about to reply, Veronica’s voice suddenly rang out right beside my ear. "Andrew, come up here now and tell everyone what your plan for next quarter looks like."

I quickly put my phone away.

Carrying the PowerPoint deck I had prepared in advance, I walked up to the stage. As I did, I glanced at Veronica.

She was dressed in a sharp, professional suit, her hair tied into a high ponytail. Her whole presence felt cutting and intense.

There was no denying it. Her features were stunning—the kind of beauty that stood out at first glance. She also had naturally fair, cool-toned skin.

It was just that I had never really seen her in casual clothes, so she always came off as cold and unapproachable, the kind of person you instinctively knew not to mess with.

Back then, there had been people foolish enough to try to pursue Veronica. A beauty like her attracting attention was hardly surprising, but none of the people who chased after her ended well. Every single one of them was fired.

After that, almost no one dared to make a move on her again.

Faced with an evil CEO like her, I naturally kept my distance. I would never even think about living together with someone like that.

Once on stage, I quickly projected my proposal onto the screen. It was a plan centered on developing and improving the company’s products, along with some of my own ideas. I also briefly outlined my promotional and sales strategy for the next quarter.

The whole presentation took about half an hour.

During that time, Veronica’s gaze occasionally landed on me, openly sizing me up.

Watching her stand there, aloof and arrogant, I truly could not imagine that she would privately say things like—

"Hubby, I want you to lift me up…

"Hubby, I want kisses…"

It was completely unbelievable. I suddenly thought of the saying that people really are not what they seem.

'Veronica, you really are something.'

After I finished speaking, no one reacted. It was not until Veronica started clapping that everyone else followed suit.

"I hope you can achieve the targets you just mentioned next quarter. Otherwise, you can really pack up and get out."

I smiled awkwardly. "You can count on me to get it done."

Just as I returned to my seat, a few more messages came in.

"Dear hubby, tonight I’ll wear stockings for you to appreciate. Do you like black or white? I even bought some new lingerie in all kinds of styles… tonight’s going to be just for us."

Holy hell.

What kind of unfiltered nonsense was this?

'Veronica, I never would’ve guessed you were this bold.'

I really never would have imagined it. Truly, you never knew a person beyond their surface.

"Are you sure you can keep up with all that?" I could not help replying.

"Stop it, hubby. Isn't this your favorite? I’m just catering to your preferences."

Struck speechless, I was completely shaken. Was I really this wild with Veronica five years in the future?

I could not help lifting my head and sneaking another look at her. She shot me a look sharp enough to kill. I immediately looked away and joined the others in applauding.

By the time the meeting finally ended, I felt like my entire body had fallen apart.

Walking out of the conference room, even the air outside felt lighter. My whole body relaxed.

I checked the time. It was already late. I had thought about leaving work early. Back in the office, I quickly packed up my things and prepared to head home.

The other colleagues did the same. Once they escaped the conference room, they rushed out like refugees. Everyone was afraid that Veronica would hold them back for overtime.

I moved just as fast, quickly grabbing my things and heading out.

However, after only a few steps, I ran straight into Veronica, who had just exited the conference room.

We looked at each other.

I forced a smile. "Ms. Starling, I’ll be heading home now."

She looked at me expressionlessly. "Wait."

The moment I heard that, my mind was instantly filled with a stampede of utter chaos.

I knew it. I had no idea how she did it, but she always managed to find more work for me.

"This is a market research report I organized recently. It should be useful to you. Take a look when you have time." Veronica handed me a document.

I froze for a few seconds. My brain failed to process it right away. I never would have expected Veronica to proactively help me.

"Isn't this what you want?"

"I do, I do, I do…" Free benefits like this were not something I would ever refuse.

I took the document, thanked Veronica, and left the office.

On the way, the future Veronica sent another message.

"Hubby, I miss you…"

Just reading it gave off an overwhelmingly sweet, almost cloying feeling.

I pulled my thoughts back and could not help asking, "Do you remember that time my performance was bad, you criticized me in public, and afterward you gave me a very detailed market research report? Why did you help me then?"

I asked because Veronica had never helped any other colleague like that. From her perspective, everyone handled their own problems.

Everyone was an adult at work, not a three-year-old child. The workplace was a battlefield, and everything depended on yourself. With that mindset, there was no reason for her to help me.

I walked while staring at my phone screen.

After more than a minute, future Veronica finally replied, "Because… because I already liked you back then. I felt you were different from the other people at the office."

That message shattered me completely.

She already liked me back then?

Shock.

I could feel my eyes widen in disbelief.

Different from the other colleagues?

"Hubby, why are you asking this? It is really embarrassing to answer…" Future Veronica sent another message.

My brain shut down entirely.

After a few seconds of blankness, I typed, "You really liked me back then?"

I could not believe it, no matter how I thought about it. Liking me, yet targeting me everywhere?

"Of course. Otherwise, how would I have given birth to our baby, Iris Cole?" Her reply was absolute and without hesitation.

After a short pause, future Veronica sent another message. "Hubby, something is wrong with my phone. The time looks strange. The messages you sent are showing as 2025."

The moment I saw that, I knew she had discovered the time discrepancy on her end as well. We were talking across five years.

"The timestamp isn't wrong. I am Andrew from 2025. It looks like we are communicating across time."

Even as I sent that message, I felt a little unhinged. It all felt unreal.

Future Veronica immediately sent several large question marks.

"???!" She was clearly just as stunned.

After that, we talked things through and more or less accepted this reality.

I had originally thought Veronica would react cautiously. Instead, she became even more excited.

"Wow, I never thought I would get to talk to my past husband. This is so interesting, hubby…"

She kept sending messages, calling me "hubby" over and over.

I stared at the word on my screen. At the same time, the image of Veronica’s cold, distant face surfaced in my mind. It all felt unreal, like a hallucination.

"Hubby, I just heard the door open. Are you home already?"

She quickly corrected herself. "No, it's the 2030 version of you who just got home. I am going to greet him. Let's talk later."