For them, free will is a luxury . . . Greg Papilio both wants and dreads his impending metamorphosis. He's tired of being an ugly runt--always picked last on the basketball court--when he could be strong and what girls call "drop dead gorgeous." But as much as he looks forward to the transformation, he also fears the caste it will inevitably assign to him. He doesn't want a common caste. He wants a powerful one, a cool one. Samantha Gibson is average. She's short and a little full around the hips--a terribly cute look for a future chef. She's two years away from culinary school, from her uncaring parents, and from carving a perfectly Human future. She wants independence, a career and a quiet life of her own. Except fate couldn't care less about what Greg and Samantha want and gives them exactly the opposite. Greg's metamorphosis assigns him a caste that enslaves him, while Samantha's chance to attend Le Cordon Bleu is taken away. But things are never as interesting as when Ashby--an intriguing blonde with a hidden identity--enters her life with a splash. Greg's fate is to be Samantha's Keeper, to protect her at a time when someone wants her dead. He will stop at nothing to ensure her safety, even if her secret past proves deadly, even if he's keeping her safe for someone else.