Linna Fortense knows any woman would be happy to have Del Tennvic as a lover. The problem is, the burly Xanderran doesn't know she's a woman. Del thinks she's a Pleasurebot, a KMPN-Model, and Linna's not about to tell him the truth. In Newcity, being something other than what you claim to be can get you terminated. When Howard Adar and the Ruling Council crack down hard on mechos, those citizens who aren't fully human and aren't quite machine, Linna has no choice but to tell Del the truth. Then the race is on to get them both out of Newcity before Adar's Security Operatives discover Linna's secret and Del's part in keeping it.

Del has admired Linna for a long time. He knows she'd be more than happy to give him her body in return for his help in getting her Offworld. It's an offer Del desperately wants to accept. The trouble is, Xanderrans mate for life, and Del's not sure he's ready to make that choice. When an overly amorous space ship captain sets her sights on him, though, Del discovers he might not have a choice at all...