Protective Instinct // Defensive Line

If NFL player Brody Shaw wants to retire from his hometown team, the Dallas Bulldogs, he needs to keep his head down and his nose clean. When the stray dog he rescued bites the pet sitter, it sets off an avalanche of bad publicity, and it's time to bring in a professional.

Dog-trainer Lily Costello has no intention of training Brody's dog, CC -- football players are bad news, and Brody Shaw is a player if she's ever met one. Then she sees the brand on CC's stomach. She came from a puppy mill -- the very one Lily is trying to find and shut down.

Brody is all in to help the curvy trainer, and with his clout and connections, Lily finally has a lead. But it's not long before they attract the wrong kind of attention. When someone makes it clear that they'll stop at nothing to halt the search, it'll take everything Brody and Lily have to escape with their lives…