Bargaining Synonym Novels & Stories

Anateya Berretta had her entire life mapped out. Get good grades, get her MBA, and take over her papi's security company as his sole heir. However, papi messed up and now she was a bargaining chip held hostage by New York's No. 1 Mafia Lord. It certainly didn't help that she'd met the man before, and yearned for him like no other. Romero Bartolone was at the peak of his rule when he lost his favorite casino in an organized attack. Now he was out one billion, with countless elitists jonesing for the returns on their backdoor investment. She was only supposed to be a hostage, but he couldn't stay away from the alluring light inside her that called to his darkness. First things first, a debt was owed-- and if someone had to pay-- why not her? Besides, she was entangled in the game of the underground now, and he was the only monster who could keep her safe. Still, with dangers lurking all around, they remain vulnerable in the most high-stakes game of all, the game of hearts. And he'd burn the world... so as long as he didn't lose. [Nb: This is a dark romance book intended for mature audiences. Reader's discretion is advised.] No. of Chapters To Be Released: ~50

After my father died, my mother remarried and took my younger sister and me with her. But her new husband had one condition—she could only bring one child. From people who used to hang around my dad, I later learned that my grandfather was actually a wealthy antique collector. My sister clung to him for her own future, refusing to let go. But in his eyes, her only job was to get straight A's; everything else—her clothes, her meals, her allowance—was kept to the bare minimum. I went with my stepfather instead. His business took off, and we eventually moved into a huge mansion. He even set me up with an engagement to the heir of a powerful, wealthy family. My sister was eaten up with jealousy. One day, she doused me in gasoline and dragged us both back in time to that day we had to choose our futures. This time, she lunged for my stepfather's hand and held on tight. "I want to stay with Mom and Dad," she announced. I didn't miss a beat. I immediately ducked behind my grandfather. 'Fine, Phoebe. You're the one who chose a life as a bargaining chip. Don't blame me for it. You can have it.'

THE ALPHA KING AND HIS PRISONER Ashina never thought she would be captured by the rival pack, let alone become a bargaining chip in their alpha's quest for power. As the daughter of her own pack's alpha, Ashina was raised to be strong and independent, but now she finds herself at the mercy of her captors. However, Ashina soon discovers that the rival pack's alpha, Draco, is not what she expected. He's not the ruthless and heartless leader she imagined, but rather a complex and conflicted man with a troubled past. As Ashina spends more time with Draco, she begins to see him in a different light, and a forbidden attraction starts to grow between them. Caught between loyalty to her own pack and her growing feelings for Draco, Ashina must navigate a dangerous and unpredictable world of werewolf politics and power struggles. But as she gets closer to Draco, she realizes that he may hold the key to ending the conflict between their packs and bringing peace to their World. As the tension between their packs reaches a boiling point, Ashina and Draco must decide whether to follow their hearts or their loyalties. But when a common enemy threatens them both, they'll have to rely on each other if they want to survive. Will their love be enough to overcome the odds stacked against them, or will they be forced to choose between their families and their happiness?

Ten years of devotion. Five years of marriage. One night to destroy it all. Evelyn Vance thought her husband, Julian, was her soulmate—until she discovered she was nothing more than a bargaining chip. To save his failing empire, Julian commits the ultimate sin: he "gifts" his wife to his most hated rival, the cold and ruthless billionaire Killian Blackwood, for a single night of negotiation. Julian told her it was just a dinner. He lied. Killian Blackwood has spent a decade building an empire out of spite, driven by a singular, dark obsession: the woman his enemy stole from him. When Julian hands Evelyn over on a silver platter, Killian doesn't just plan to take his revenge—he plans to claim what was always meant to be his. One night of calculated passion leaves Evelyn shattered and Julian triumphant. But the victory is short-lived. The betrayal has a heartbeat. When Evelyn discovers she’s pregnant with Killian’s child, the power dynamic shifts. Julian is desperate to hide the scandal, willing to go to lethal lengths to keep his "perfect" reputation. But Killian is no longer watching from the shadows. He is coming for his heir, and he’s coming for the woman he never stopped wanting. As Julian’s regret turns to madness and Killian’s obsession turns to protection, Evelyn must decide: Does she run from the man who sold her, or find sanctuary in the arms of the monster who bought her?

Seven years ago, I ignored my girlfriend's heart-wrenching pleas and ruthlessly severed our relationship. Now, after seven long years, she had risen to the top—and she was back, ready for her wedding. She didn't come home for mere celebration, though. She came for revenge. She obliterated the company my father had spent his entire life building and did not stop until she shattered his leg, forcing him to endure unimaginable pain. It was all so I'd be forced to go to her wedding and beg for forgiveness. But that wasn't enough. She wanted more. She hissed, brandishing a blade, "If Matthew's not here in ten minutes, I'll slice off a finger for every minute he's late." My autistic brother's fingers, the only way he could create art, became a bargaining chip in her sadistic game. Dad's anguished cries filled the air as he pleaded for mercy, but she was not done. She wanted to tear my family apart piece by piece. My mom, fragile and trapped in the haze of Alzheimer's, was next. Her mind, already slipping, crumbled under the relentless torment. She cracked, completely lost to the madness. With tears streaming down his face, Dad said, "My son died the day you left for abroad."

The little boy I had saved when we were kids grew up to be a possessive, obsessive CEO. For ten years, he kept me by his side, using my grandmother's illness as a bargaining chip to force me into marrying him. He tried everything to win my heart, pulling every trick in the book, but no matter what he did, he could never make me love him. In a fit of rage, he found a woman who looked almost exactly like me to take my place. They flaunted their relationship for everyone to see, and people whispered that the CEO had finally found his true love. But that day, the woman, riding on his affection, barged into the villa with her entourage. She broke my fingers one by one, slashed my face with a utility knife, and removed my clothes to humiliate me. "Even though you had surgery to look like me, I'll let that slide. But you even learned to paint like me, too? You really did your homework. Let's see how you try to seduce men now!" Just as I was bleeding out and on the verge of death, the obsessive CEO finally showed up. The stand-in grabbed my hair and dragged me in front of him, smugly reporting, "Honey, this wench was hiding in the villa trying to seduce you. I've made sure she can't succeed!"

He rejected his fated human mate to save his pack. Now the cursed Luna he broke is the only one who can save—or destroy—him. “Mine.” That single word from the most dangerous man in the room changes my life forever. I’m just a broke human waitress, juggling two jobs to pay my mother’s hospital bills, when a brutal bar fight ends with my throat under a stranger’s claws…and my fate sealed by a kiss I never asked for. Ronan Vale, Alpha of the Crimson Hollow Pack—cold, merciless, untouchable—claims me as his mate in front of his warriors. There’s just one problem. I’m human. His pack wants me dead. And Ronan? He rejects me in public the very next day. To the wolves, I’m nothing but a bargaining chip: a human “Luna” tied to the Alpha by a contract arrangement to keep peace with the human council. To Ronan, I’m supposed to be an inconvenience—a weakness he can not afford. Then why does he look at me like he wants to devour me? Why does my body burn whenever he’s close? The more Ronan touches me, the more something inside me awakens: sharp senses, violent hunger, flashes of another life that doesn’t belong to a human girl at all. I’m not just a human Luna. I’m the cursed mate he once swore he’d never accept… and this time, I might be the one who walks away.

Dante Russo doesn't forgive. He doesn't forget. And when the President of the United States has the nerve to double-cross him, Dante doesn't go for blood—he goes for the man's heart. By kidnapping his son. Marco Powell never asked to be part of his father's shadowy world of corruption and backroom deals. But when masked assailants drag him from a glittering Washington soiree and into the ruthless grasp of Dante Russo, Marco's existence is distilled to the final bargaining chip. Kidnapped. Held captive. Compelled to kneel at the feet of Italy's most lethal man. Dante Russo doesn't just want ransom—he wants humiliation. He wants the President to hurt. And to make the whole world feel it, Dante does the unthinkable: he marries Marco in a ceremony as legal as it is lethal. An altar of a wedding shrouded in blood. A kiss meant to destroy. A war between two men who should hate each other but can't keep their hands off each other. Marco is everything Dante isn't used to. sarcastic, idealistic, infuriatingly beautiful and Dante is everything Marco should fear: fire, danger, sin, and temptation in a designer suit. Their arranged marriage sparks a deadly obsession. Every touch is a battle. Every kiss is war on their lips. And every night, Marco has to ask himself the question he fears most Does he hate Dante enough to fight him? Or does he want him badly enough to burn? Because in this game, seduction and revenge ignite and the line between love and hate doesn't just blur. It burns.

Aria was the Luna of the Winter Mist pack, renowned for her achievements in war strategy. Her contribution was crucial in her pack becoming the most powerful in the entire country. Everything in her life should be perfect. ...Except it wasn't. In actuality, Aria's life was anything but successful. She was helpless to the whims of her abusive Alpha mate and his mistress. A mate who never loved her. As she watches their relationship grow, her options are to run away or die trying to keep her Luna position. But this is not the story of how Aria sways his closed-off heart until he finally loves her. No, this is the story of how Aria died. So when she is faced with the opportunity to go back in time and try again... will she take it? ...Or is she fated to relive her mistakes all over again? ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ "...And if I refuse?" I asked hesitantly. "Then you will remain in the Abyss, forever reliving your earthly memories." My mind recalled the images that had just tormented me, showing me my death over and over again. I knew now she must have shown me that strategically so I had a taste of what my refusal would look like. "Then I don't want to be Luna again... and I don't want to be Aleric's mate," I said, surprising even myself that I was bargaining with a Goddess. But I couldn't shake the feeling something seemed off. "That is the fate I have chosen for you." "Then I don't accept," I argued. "I think there is something you're not telling me. A reason why you need me to go back so badly." She was silent, her silver eyes regarding me warily. "...So I am correct," I said, taking her silence as confirmation.

"My husband sold me like property. But the man who bought me... he wants to make me his queen." For three years, Stacy has endured the unthinkable. Her husband Matt doesn't just neglect her—he sells her. Night after night, he forces her into the beds of wealthy investors and powerful business partners, using her body to seal his deals. An "open marriage," he calls it. But there's nothing open about being used as merchandise. "I was his business asset. His bargaining chip. His whore." At the Sterling Gala, Matt drugs her and delivers her to a room full of predators—five men ready to claim their "payment." But something inside Stacy finally breaks. She fights back. She runs. And crashes straight into the arms of Michael Sotheby—billionaire, corporate king, and the one man even her husband fears. "I didn't save you for free. You owe me a debt. And I intend to collect." Michael's protection comes with a price. What starts as a transaction becomes something far more dangerous. His touch doesn't feel like violation. His kiss awakens desires she thought were dead. For the first time in three years, she feels alive. But when morning comes, terror grips her heart. Michael isn't just any billionaire—he's Matt's biggest rival. And he has no intention of letting her go. Caught between the husband who sells her and the billionaire who wants to own her, Stacy discovers that sometimes the most dangerous man is the only one who can set you free. WARNING: This book contains mature themes including sexual coercion, trafficking within marriage, dubious consent, dark romance elements, and morally complex characters. Intended for adult readers only.