Julie Gladwell has a secret. Acting as chief attendant for the New Government’s procreation program, she rears girls to carry the emperor’s heir. Only a few are chosen for the program, called “The Special Ones,” and they are given no names, only numbers. They see no one but authorized personnel until their twenty-first birthday. Which is usually when they die. Direct contact is forbidden. As she cares for these girls, no one ever suspects who she actually is. Scientist Malcolm Odin hated his job and hated himself. Put in charge of the entire human engineering program, the experiments and suffering he witnessed made him sick. Still, it paid the bills and kept him living comfortably in Terrecina. He knew of far too many who’d fallen through the cracks, living on the earth below. The Level People, they were called. When he confides his unease to Julie, she lets him in on her secret and into her heart. What starts as fancy ends in revolution, but how will they choose between their fellow man and each other?

When Graciela Merced fumbles a package she’s delivering for her mysterious and sexy boss, Gene Hardy, she finds out he’s more than just a wealthy photographer. Prepared to lose her job, she confronts him…and ends up embroiled in the tricky takedown of a powerful drug cartel pushing cocaine into the heart of New York City. Marco Valencia is an undercover agent, working against time—and against Gene Hardy—to crack Angel’s Drug Cartel before the story makes it to the press. When Hardy’s luscious Venezuelan messenger literally falls at his feet, he has no idea just how well he’ll get to know the beauty or how difficult it will be to drop her. Hardened by experience, Gene Hardy takes his undercover work seriously and charges a hefty price. When Grace makes a careless mistake and hurls him back into the path of Marco Valencia, he must either fire her or involve her in a twisted plot that could kill them all. As the two men battle over their feelings for Graciela—and their attraction to each other—one thing becomes perfectly clear. Grace is much more than just the messenger.

Jessica Deitermeier is on the run. The rings she inherited upon her mother’s untimely death are worth money, and her uncle will apparently stop at nothing to get them. In search of sanctuary, Jessica makes her way from Boston to Minnesota and finds work on a small farm. Everything goes smoothly... until the farmer's “prodigal son” comes home.Ben Elkers is a failed businessman. After losing all his money in bad investments, he makes his way home to Sauk Centre. Considering the way he left his parents without so much as a phone call for the holidays, their unconditional welcome comes as a surprise. He’s even more surprised by the fiery red-headed girl who has taken over his old room.Together, Jessica and Ben will discover the importance of family, but are they willing to do whatever it takes to find home?