Synonym Reluctantly

I stared down at the contract, a wave of defiance bubbling up in me. I turned back to him, meeting his gaze head-on. "I never asked for your help," I said, "I would've found a way to save my mother on my own. You may think you own me, but I'd rather die than marry you." A slow smile crept across his face, a smug, knowing look that sent a chill down my spine. He knew exactly what I was thinking, as if my resistance only entertained him. "Look at me," he commanded. I reluctantly turned back, locking eyes with him. His face had shifted, his expression darkened, and for the first time, true fury was etched in his eyes. "I’ll count to ten," he said, "If that contract isn’t signed by the time I reach ten, I’ll make the same call I made to pay those bills. Only this time, the instructions will be different. Your mother... your sister…they’ll both be gone." He took a breath, settling back as if the threat were a mere matter of routine. "So… ONE!!" I swallowed hard, my heartbeat pounding in my ears. Could he be bluffing? No, I'd seen him kill before, seen how casually he turned life and death into sports. "FOUR," he counted. My hands started to shake. What could I do? If I signed, I'd be bound to him forever, trapped as his wife. But if I didn’t... my mother and sister’s lives hung in the balance. "SEVEN." I closed my eyes, fighting the panic rising in my chest. He wouldn’t do it, I told myself. He couldn’t be that monstrous. But even as I thought it, the doubt crept in. I wasn’t sure. Then, he hit "TEN" himself

Anastasia, a princess from the kingdom of Delmonte, intentionally travels to the future to find her husband, Dominic. Unexpectedly, she finds herself in the body of an unfortunate girl, Gwyneth Stacy, and struggles to locate her husband. The future world bewilders her, but she can't return to the ancient world. Reluctantly, she must adapt as Gwyneth, even engaging with Axel Maximilian Geraldton, her fiancé. Facing persecution from Peter, Brenda, her step-siblings, and her frequently absent father, she confronts challenges. Feeling lost and unable to find Dominic, Gwyneth considers marrying Axel to escape her oppressive family. Despite Gwyneth's efforts to explain her true identity as Anastasia, Axel refuses to believe and dismisses it as a joke. Will she succeed in finding Dominic? And what about Axel, who continues to see her as Gwyneth? Anastasia's adventure in Gwyneth's body is more than just a search for Dominic or an exploration of the modern world; it's a mystery surrounding Gwyneth's soul and her affection for Axel!

James’s lips brushed against mine, sending shivers down my spine. His eyes remained aloof, but his mouth ignited flames within me. My pulse raced as his cold, calculated kiss unexpectedly sparked desire. I abruptly melted into him, seeking warmth. James expression remained neutral, but his grip on me tightened, betraying his character and his hidden emotions. *************** Ava's world changed into an adventurous one, the day she got involved in an accident with Simville's most cruel and heartless billionaire. Unlucky for her, she becomes James pawn as she finds herself in a marriage contract, in order to secure his next heir as his health dwindled. Ava on the other hand, agrees reluctantly, in order to amass wealth from their contract, to pay off her debts with her forced lover, Brandon, hoping to see her lost mother once again. But as the fake love become real, Brandon becomes nicer and more gentle,an evidence of their contract love coming into reality. After reuniting with her mom, Ava is forced to choose - Going to live with her mother in her new found home, or staying with James, who has fully fallen for her. Would she choose her last true relative over her first true love??

The only audible sounds for the next few minutes were the platters of rain against the window and our heavy breathing. I saw him walk his naked ass to the bedside drawer, returning with a document in his hands. "What's this?", I questioned as I reluctantly took it from him. "A contract you need to sign to live." I grew silent as I read through the document. "If you sign that, you're going to be mine and mine alone. I'm going to have you whenever I want, and do with you whatever I please. In return, your father gets to live." *** Sofia's miserable life even darker when she is forced to be the payment for her father's debt to the most ruthless Mafia Lord in the city. Enzo had just one taste of her from a one night stand, and now he can't get her off his head. To keep her close he makes her sign a contract - BE MY SEX DOLL, AND IN RETURN, YOUR FATHER GETS TO LIVE. How long will the lustful contract hold? How will Sofia survive when she's suddenly exposed to the dark rollercoaster of Enzo's underworld? Will she keep being his private prostitute, or will there ever be an unlikely spark of love and desire?

Devastated by a brutal breakup, Emma's life spirals out of control. After a reckless night, she discovers she is pregnant by the infamous playboy, Ethan Blackwood. Ethan vehemently denies any connection to her, but when Emma's stepmother confronts him with the pregnancy news and threatens to ruin his reputation, he reluctantly agrees to marry Emma. "You're just a contractual wife to me. I can sleep with whoever I want, and you have no right to question me," he coldly declares. Will Ethan open his heart to love again? Will Emma keep the baby despite his rejection? And will she agree to the harsh terms of being Ethan's contract wife?

On the night of her 23rd birthday, Nova's world shatters when she learns that her father has arranged her engagement without her consent to Henry, the heir of a billionaire family, a man she barely knows. Feeling trapped and betrayed, she makes a desperate escape, running from the life that others have chosen for her. With her father’s guards closing in, Nova takes a chance and slips into the first car she finds outside the mansion. But her gamble lands her face-to-face with Bentley Sterling, the cold and enigmatic CEO of Sterling Incorporation, a man notorious for his indifference to emotional attachments. Bentley has no interest in saving a runaway heiress, but when Nova offers a bold proposition, her personal services in exchange for his protection, he reluctantly agrees. As his live-in assistant, she endures his impossible demands and distant demeanor, but beneath his ruthless exterior, something unexpected begins to unravel. What starts as a transaction turns into something deeper, something Bentley wanted; desire, vulnerability, and a love he doesn't know how to handle. Will Bentley and Nova fight for their love or we will they allow external forces tear them apart?

She thought she could endure a loveless marriage to repay her family’s debt—but she didn’t count on the cost of her heart. Once the proud daughter of a wealthy businessman, ELENA BRADFORD watched her life crumble when her father’s betrayal left her and her mother drowning in debt. Desperate to protect her family, she reluctantly agreed to a marriage contract with her father’s former business partner’s reckless son, ADRIAN HAWTHORNE—a man who once loved her during their university days but now only mocks her fall from grace. Trapped in a cold marriage filled with scorn and humiliation, Elena finds herself suffocating under the weight of Adrian’s cruelty. But everything changes at a high-profile dinner when she locks eyes with the one person she never thought she’d see again—LUCAS EVERHART, her childhood best friend, who once confessed his love before vanishing from her life. Now a powerful CEO, Lucas is stunned to see the woman he loved trapped in a toxic marriage. Learning of her misery, he vows to free her from the chains of her past—even if it means clashing with Adrian who refuses to let her go. As old feelings reignite and secrets unravel, Elena must decide: will she fight for the love she once believed in, or will her past mistakes keep her from the future she deserves?

Valentina Hales was a carefree young woman, known for making one bad decision after another. But her world spiraled out of control after the mysterious disappearance and death of her sister, Taylor. Following her late sister’s cryptic instructions, Valentina flees from North London to South London, where she finds herself pregnant… a product of a reckless one-night stand with a stranger… and utterly alone, struggling to rebuild her shattered life. Four years later, circumstances drag Valentina back to North London, where she reluctantly takes a job as a maid at the Hawthorne mansion—the very job her sister once held. Her employer: Christopher Hawthorne, a blind and tormented billionaire haunted by his own dark demons. What happens when Valentina finds certain truths, causing her to dig deeper into the Hawthorne family’s secrets and unravel a huge web of lies, deceit, and betrayal? And her quest for vengeance becomes more complicated when she begins to see Christopher in a new light. Will Valentina’s thirst for revenge lead to victory, or will the dark secrets of the Hawthorne family consume her? And what happens when she ends up finding love where she least expects it? In this story of forbidden love and shocking twists, nothing is as it seems… and no one can be trusted. In this forbidden romance novel, trust is a luxury… and danger lurks in every shadow.

Olivia Cadell, an ambitious and dedicated secretary at Pierce Enterprises, finds herself entangled in a web of lies spun by her boss, Dawson Pierce- during a crucial business negotiation, Dawson claims to be in a relationship with Olivia to get an investor who is committed to only working with married businessmen. Struggling with her daughter's medical bills, Olivia who has been repeatedly denied advance pay by the HR, reluctantly agrees to Dawson's proposal of marriage contract. As they navigate their false relationship, and professional challenges and confront their growing attraction and true feelings for each other and the complexities of their pasts

In the high stakes world of wealth, philanthropy, and power plays, Shadows of Desire weaves a tale of love, betrayal, and redemption. At the center of it all is Sophie Langston, a passionate and driven woman who co-founded a charitable foundation with her long-time business partner and lover, James Thornton. Their organization, built on the ideals of changing the world, has become a beacon of hope for struggling communities. But as the foundation grows in influence, so do the enemies lurking in the shadows. Sophie and James find their relationship and partnership tested when an unexpected visitor walks into their lives, Richard Mallory, a disgraced businessman with a tainted past. Despite having tried to undermine the foundation before, Richard proposes a substantial investment, claiming he wants to make amends. Torn between suspicion and the potential benefits for their projects, Sophie reluctantly agrees, setting off a chain of events that unravel deep-seated conspiracies and hidden agendas. Soon after, whispers of internal conflict and financial instability begin to surface. Rumors swirl about a power struggle between Sophie and James, putting their relationship under intense public scrutiny. Behind the scenes, they uncover a more sinister plot at play. Dominic Kane, a ruthless corporate raider infamous for hostile takeovers and blackmail, has set his sights on their foundation. With a history of exploiting the vulnerable for profit, Kane sees their organization as his next target, aiming to use it as a pawn in his larger schemes. As Sophie and James grapple with this new threat, they must navigate a web of deceit, power struggles, and hidden motives. Old allies resurface, trust is tested, and secrets from the past are unearthed, forcing the couple to confront their own vulnerabilities...