Story cover for A Devious Exchange by Paper2Pen
A Devious Exchange
  • WpView
    Reads 809
  • WpVote
    Votes 144
  • WpPart
    Parts 29
  • WpHistory
    Time 6h 30m
  • WpView
    Reads 809
  • WpVote
    Votes 144
  • WpPart
    Parts 29
  • WpHistory
    Time 6h 30m
Ongoing, First published Nov 29, 2022
Ever since her father died to illness, Josephine Williams felt inclined to take on the role of providing for her family. Together, they have survived amongst the many living in the poorest sector of the Helacian Empire during the birth of the 19th century. When she thinks the most of her troubles are over, from marriage proposals to working late nights at the local saloon, a sudden call to the king has her head spinning on what is real and what is not. 

The tale of a kingdom's downfall from a cheated trade stirs for a reawakening, where Josephine must go on a quest to make an exchange of her own, to free her family from the royal's hand. However, what if the dealer isn't who she thought they were? With a handsome captain offering his assistance, to a surging rebellion reminding her time is running out, she must decide on whether to go against the royal's wishes or betray the very being she has grown fiery feelings towards. 

The question probes, "Is it worth bargaining for?"
All Rights Reserved
Sign up to add A Devious Exchange to your library and receive updates
or
#24trade
Content Guidelines
You may also like
When We Found Us (The South Grove Shores Series Book 2) by Megsmcg07
65 parts Complete Mature
Josette Wilde never imagined her happy ending would start with her house burning down. Once a hopeless romantic who believed in grand gestures and cinematic kisses, Jo learned the hard way that real life rarely follows a script. When the man she thought was her forever walked out the moment she told him she was pregnant, Jo was left to rewrite her story-this time as a single mother to a fearless little girl named Hannah. Years later, just as Jo lands the kind of job that could finally give them the life they deserve, disaster strikes-her home is destroyed in a freak accident, leaving her and Hannah with nothing but each other. With no place to go, Jo turns to the last person she ever expected to lean on: Mitchell Harris, her charming, fiercely protective childhood friend. He offers them a place to stay, and Jo accepts-grateful, but uneasy. She's been secretly crushing on him for the last couple of years, and living under the same roof only blurs the lines she's fought for years to keep in place. As Jo and Mitchell fall into an unexpected rhythm-shared meals, whispered laughter, stolen glances-the life Jo always dreamed of suddenly feels within reach. But just as her heart begins to hope again, the past shows up at her front door. Hannah's father wants back in, claiming he's ready to be a father and fix what he broke. Now, Jo is faced with an impossible choice: return to the familiar comfort of a love that once betrayed her, or risk everything on the man who just might be her forever-if she's brave enough to believe in a new beginning.
Daughters of the King (Completed) by Purplejeans
36 parts Complete
{WATTYS 2020 WINNER} {FEATURED BOOK} Paris, 1663. 500 girls selected by King Louis XIV embark on a journey across the seas from their homeland. Each is given a dowry, and the expectation that they are to marry a French settler, in order to increase the population of New France. They are the historic Daughters of the King, or "les filles du roi." Eighteen-year-old Celeste Dubois is a free-spirited, educated and headstrong girl. She comes from a wealthy Parisian family that has squandered their money and is subsequently forced to journey to New France. However, Celeste doesn't plan on marrying a complete stranger. She hopes to use the dowry and the free voyage as a way to escape the poverty and social ranks of Paris. Matters are complicated when against her will, she falls in love. Romantic, kind and stunningly beautiful Lorraine Leblanc is a girl from a large family with children to spare. Unlike Celeste, she happily dreams of the day she will meet her future husband in New France. When she marries a mysterious widower with two young children of his own and still reeling after his broken heart, she realizes that married life isn't all she had hoped it would be, and begins to question her new husband's complicated past. - Wattpad Picks Blast to the Future Past list 2018 - The 50 Best Wattpad Stories of 2018/19 by Design Wizard - 2018 Youngblood Awards Winner (Romance) - 2018 True North Awards 2nd place for Historical Fiction and 2nd place Truly Canadian special category award - Featured by Wattpad Historical Fiction profile under Kings, Courtships and Empires, Young Adult Fiction profile under Love, Actually and Romance profile under Time will Tell *Please be aware that since this book covers the colonial period, it does contain sensitive themes of racism and violence that readers will find disturbing. There are resources at the back of the book that prompt further learning in the Historical Notes section.*
A Taste of Candor by flamesword01
33 parts Complete
When a struggling foreign musician crosses paths with a spirited lady who is a patron of the arts, the two develop a harmonious rapport. The two must face an array of prejudices and misunderstandings that threaten to dissolve their bond. ***** Declan is an understated yet persistent young saxophonist, a recent immigrant from war-torn Candor and a newcomer to the Silverport music scene. He has little to boast of besides the clothes on his back, the saxophone in his hand, and a staunch determination to secure himself a niche on the bandstand to make a living healing souls with his art. Nonetheless, due to various adversities, he can't seem to be able to hold down a stable job, and mere perseverance won't keep food on the table. Meanwhile, Tahlia Paige enjoys a life of luxury among the upper classes of the city, her father being an accomplished military officer who receives generous helpings of the reparation funds pouring in from Candor. At any time, she can have nearly anything she desires. But one trouble ails the Paige family. The big band they maintain to keep them entertained in the evenings can't seem to keep one of its saxophone positions filled. When Declan and Tahlia's paths inevitably converge and their individual lives begin to intertwine, a connection develops. But a host of prejudices stand to keep the two apart and compel several in Tahlia's circle to keep Declan at arms' length from her. Can the two surmount these obstacles, or is their convergence truly destined to be only temporary? ALL RIGHTS RESERVED © 2021 by @Flamesword01 Cover by @dilenu
The Last Connection: Blessing from Above by TyMattler
40 parts Complete Mature
500 years ago, not one soul could find peace from the wars raging between realm's power hungry rulers. To save the realm from complete self-destruction, the Gods made mankind a promise: Whoever can make peace between themselves shall bring about a blessing on the realm for a dozen generations. And so it was. 14 aging Kings of the western coast made peace and formed 3 empires. 11 ambitious Dukes arranged marriages to form 9 new kingdoms. 8 proud Lords of the lake settled their feuds and divided the lakeside. 4 greedy Masters of the mining colonies established the mining confederation. 3 holy Priests united the true worshipers to found a ministry governed state. And so the Gods blessed them, connecting souls across the realm so they may share knowledge, skills and companionship. But a dozen generations have passed and the Blessed have not been seen in decades, becoming nothing more than a story. But the story is not finished yet. To remind the realm of the chaos and destruction birthed by war, the Gods showered the realm with meteors as 8 newborns received the last Blessing of the Lords. As the last children to be touched by the Gods, they will be hunted by those who long for chaos to engulf the realm. They will be tempted to use their shared knowledge for their own gain. But if the realm is to survive, they must use their skills to strengthen each other and end the conflict before it can begin. A naive princess and a vengeful slave. A high-born priestess and an orphaned thief. A reserved hunter and an ambitious acrobat. A noble knight and a crooked smuggler.
Beneath Her Brown Eyes  by SupriyaRSingh5
25 parts Ongoing Mature
𝑩𝒐𝒐𝒌 1 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒆 ♡𝐇𝐢𝐝𝐝𝐞𝐧 𝐋𝐨𝐯𝐞♡ 𝑺𝒆𝒓𝒊𝒆𝒔 𝐀𝐝𝐡𝐢𝐬𝐡𝐫𝐞𝐞, the 𝑪𝑬𝑶 of 𝑹𝒆𝒈𝒆𝒍𝒊𝒂 𝑹𝒐𝒔𝒆, on her path to achieving her goal of becoming the next diamond queen, suddenly faced an unexpected turn of events that sent her straight back to what she always dreaded: marriage. She wasn't gamophobic or philophobic, but the thought of sharing her space, time, and life with someone intimately made her nauseous. But life never goes the way we desire-especially not when we're stubborn enough to resist what it demands. She had dodged relationships in the past like a soldier dodges bullets, but now it seemed inevitable. She had dreamt many things-good, bad, lucky, unlucky-but never imagined being married at the age of 32, that too to someone younger than her. Enter 𝐕𝐢𝐯𝐢𝐝𝐡. Looks like a cinnamon roll, is exactly a cinnamon roll. He could've been the golden child of his parents if he hadn't chosen to be a 𝒑𝒓𝒐𝒇𝒆𝒔𝒔𝒐𝒓. Coming from a family of diamond merchants, it was rebellious of him to take such a step-but sometimes young blood, in rebellion, makes the best decisions. He had planned his life perfectly: gain experience, earn money, buy land in North East India, and settle there in the peace of hills and greenery. But oh, my little boy-he is now tied to a marriage he never asked for. And the worst part? He has no idea why someone so beautiful, carrying the aura of buying tens of him, decided to marry 𝒉𝒊𝒎. Not his elder brother. Not any cousin. But him. It wasn't just a shock-it was disbelief. He saw her eyes, and those brown orbs captivated him enough to keep him from noticing the glint of victory behind them. He had never even held a woman's hand in his entire life, yet now being hers made him feel he was in love. But... is she too? What will happen the day he discovers the reason behind the marriage
You may also like
Slide 1 of 10
Frosted Hearts and Velvet Scars (under review) cover
Crooked Hearts cover
Love Me Not cover
When We Found Us (The South Grove Shores Series Book 2) cover
Daughters of the King (Completed) cover
A Taste of Candor cover
The Last Connection: Blessing from Above cover
The Rogue and the Rose cover
Beneath Her Brown Eyes  cover
Whispers Of The Bloodline cover

Frosted Hearts and Velvet Scars (under review)

51 parts Complete Mature

⚠️ Content Warning: This story contains themes of emotional and physical abuse, forced marriage, child loss, and trauma recovery. It explores healing and love after deep pain. Please read with care She was the future queen married to the crown prince, but was he really Prince Charming? He beat her every time a daughter was born. He kicked her out when she didn't bear an heir for him. Now, they push her into a new marriage with a stranger. He was dead inside. Commander Rayansh had it all, until the woman he trusted stole his son and his fortune. Now he hides and is filled with cold silence. They are forced together. They are both ruined goods. But in a dark, quiet winter home, the broken bride and the angry soldier start to see each other's wounds. Maybe the deepest scars can make the strongest love. A dark, slow-burn romance where two people who lost everything find a new, burning light.