I Accidentally Accepted The Male Lead's Proposal

Claire dragged her feet as she followed Ethan out of the alley.

She couldn't come up with a reason to refuse moving in with him.

They were already married. If she acted shy and hesitant now, wouldn't it seem strange?

What if Ethan misunderstood again and thought she had ulterior motives?

She had already noticed that Ethan was quite sensitive. But that wasn't surprising.

The original owner really had been a scoundrel-two-faced and manipulative, playing people like fools.

Oh well. She had to move in sooner or later anyway.

Still..

The progress was way too fast!

She had only transmigrated yesterday, and today she was already married —and about to sleep in the same bed as a man.

If her mother in her previous world found out, she would probably go сгаzу.

Of course, the mother in this world would go crazy too.

So for now, the marriage absolutely had to remain a secret.

The two took a taxi back to the apartment they shared.

When they arrived, Ethan stopped at the door instead of entering.

“Call me when you're ready" he said.

Claire quite appreciated his sense of propriety.She used to have roommates who would bring their boyfriends back to the apartment without any warning and sometimes the guys would even stay overnight.

She had always hated that.

The clothes on the balcony weren't fully dry yet.

Claire took them down and placed them in a separate bag.

The unwashed bedding was packed separately as well.

The original owner had a lot of belongings.

In the end, she packed two large suitcases and another oversized bag.

She dragged the suitcases to the door for Ethan.

Then she turned to carry the large bag. But just as she reached the door, Ethan took it from her hands.

Claire froze for a moment.

She had been used to doing everything herself. Suddenly having someone treat her so thoughtfully felt... strange.

She glanced once more at the shared apartment behind her, then closed the door and stepped into the elevator.

After she entered, Ethan pressed the button for the first floor.

When they reached the ground level, Claire reached for the large bag again.

Ethan stopped her.

“I’ll take it"

He tied the bag securely to the suitcase handle, then walked ahead, dragging a suitcase in each hand.

Claire watched him for a moment, a faint smile appearing on her lips.

Even if it was temporary, enjoying Ethan's attentive care wasn't bad at all.

Her suitcases were huge, and when they loaded them into the taxi, the trunk wouldn't close properly.

As the car drove, the trunk kept making loud thumping noises.

The sound gave Claire a headache, and she frowned.

“Are you okay?" Ethan asked.

He placed a hand gently on her head. Claire tilted her head to look at him.

His dark eyes were gentle, and for some reason, her irritation gradually subsided.

“I'm fine"

She glanced at the time She still needed to go to the company.

“When we get to the apartment building, can you help me carry my things upstairs? I'll go straight to work."

Ethan nodded.“Okay"

He lowered his head and began tapping on his phone. A moment later, Claire's phone chimed.

She opened it and saw that Ethan had sent her a message that contained a string of numbers. She tilted her head to look at him.

He was already watching her.

“Apartment password?"

He nodded and then sent another message with the building number and unit number.

He probably thought she might not be able to find it otherwise.

After all, this apartment had just been rented by Ethan, and yesterday had been her first time visiting.

“How much is the rent here each month?” Claire asked.

"Seven thousand."

Claire was startled.

“Where did you get the money?"

Seven thousand per month, plus the deposit and three months' rent upfront-that was already $28,000.

Add the diamond ring, and it was close to $40,000.

For Ethan in the future, that would be pocket change. But for him right now, it was a huge sum.

Ethan looked a little embarrassed. After a long pause, he said quietly, “Borrowed it from Kyle…"

Claire knew Kyle Robb.

He was Ethan's college roommate. He was a City A local from a fairly wealthy family and also one of his business partners.

She still didn't understand why Ethan was in such a rush to get married.

He had just graduated.

No money.

No house

Yet he had borrowed money just to get married.

If it were anyone else, she would have suspected they were trying to scam her.

Ethan suddenly took her hand. His gaze was firm.

“Claire, our current difficulties are only temporary. I promise I'll give you a good life'"

Claire already knew that.

After all, he was destined to become the heir of a top-tier wealthy family

“Mmm…I believe you."

Ethan felt both guilty and moved. He leaned slightly closer, wanting to pull her into an embrace.

Claire hurriedly interrupted, “We're here!”

Ethan paused and turned to look outside. Sure enough, they had arrived downstairs at the apartment building.

He could only give up.

The car stopped

Ethan got out, walked to the trunk, and carried the suitcases

and bags out.

Standing by the roadside, he looked at Claire. Claire smiled and waved.

“Driver, Dao Food Company!"

The taxi drove away.

Claire let out a long sigh of relief.

What should she do?

She still couldn't get used to being intimate with Ethan.

Just thinking about sharing a bed with him tonight made her unbearably nervous.

The original owner's company was located in an industrial park quite far away.

Normally, she would take the subway and then ride a shared bike for about a kilometer.

Claire glanced up at the taxi meter and gasped in shock.

$200!

And the ride wasn't even over yet.

Oh my god!

She hadn't been paying attention earlier. She should have asked the driver to drop her off at a subway station.

This whole day's wages were practically gone!

The original owner had only recently graduated, earning a monthly salary of $5,000.

After deducting social insurance and housing funds, there was barely enough left for food and rent.

Claire wanted to cry.

Her heart ached.

Her phone rang.

She looked down and saw that Ethan had transferred $1,000 to her.

She was about to accept it but then she remembered that Ethan was heavily in debt and might have sent her all the money he had.

In the end, she didn't accept it.

---

After getting out of the taxi, she tried negotiating the fare with the driver, "Sir, could you give me a discount? l just graduated and I'm very poor."

The driver glanced at her and waved impatiently. “Fine, I'll round it down. It's $252-just give me $250.”

Claire:"..."

It would've been better if he hadn't rounded it at all.

“Sir…”

The driver immediately grew impatient.

“No less than that. Hurry up and pay. I've got passengers to pick up!"

Biting her lip, Claire paid with tears in her eyes. Two Dollars saved was still two dollars saved.

She swiped her card to enter the company building and took the elevator upstairs.

The company had several hundred employees. The sales department was located on the third floor.

Claire found her workstation. She had barely sat down when a woman wearing black-rimmed glasses walked over and tapped on her desk.

“Come to my office.”

From the original owner's memories, Claire recognized her

immediately.

Sales Manager Holly Wales.

Without waiting for a response, Holly turned and walked toward her office.

As Claire stood up, she noticed several colleagues looking at her with sympathy.

It seemed this sales manager was not easy to deal with.

Taking a deep breath, Claire walked over and knocked on the office door.

After receiving permission, she pushed the door open and stepped inside.

The moment the door closed behind her, Holly began scolding her.

“Claire, this company isn't run by you. You can't just take leave whenever you feel like it!”

“Don't think you can do whatever you want just because you're pretty.”

"If you don't show professionalism and responsibility while working under me, you'd better leave right now!”

Claire hadn't expected that after transmigrating into a novel, she would still have to endure workplace humiliation.

But she was just a newcomer. No matter how harsh her boss's words were, she had to endure them. She couldn't just quit.

Ethan's wedding expenses had already left him buried in debt, and she herself didn't have much money either.

For now..

It was better to endure it.