There are so many things to love about this one.
This was my first book by this author, and I am blown away. This full-length novel is written in first person from a dual POV. It is a standalone first book in a series that delivers a HEA with no cliffhanger.

There is so much to this book. There is the drama of Brody, a football player nearing the end of his career with the injuries and politics that entails. There is the story of Lily, a dog trainer who has rejected family expectations and coercion in to pursue her dream and her happiness. You have the story of the dogs that are rescued, the mills that used to hold them, and the struggle to save more in that situation. And finally, you have the story of two people who have an instant physical attraction, become friends, share a common goal, and fall in love.
There is humor, heat, and heart all twined throughout this impeccably well-written and heart touching book. I love the way the author writes, utilizing the perfect turn of phrase at the right moment. I love the complexity of the story and the characters, who each must overcome some baggage to get to their HEA. I love that the heroine is spunky, confident, and tough as nails. I love that she stands up for what she knows she deserves and is willing to fight for the dogs who cannot fight for themselves. I love that Brody is a soft-hearted, giant of a man who falls head over heels for Lily and is willing to do anything to make her happy. I love that they must work at their relationship because relationships take work. And I love that this book shines a spotlight on the ugly underbelly of the dark side of the dog breeding world to encourage the light that comes with animal rescue, good training, and second chances at forever homes for those many would just give up on.
This is a romance for anyone who loves sports romance. This is a romance for dog lovers everywhere. And this is a romance for readers who believe that every creature is lovable to the right person for them.

Protective Instinct coaxed out a fragile vulnerability and beautiful wonder through its blinding and overwhelming love and hope. Once a crack formed in the hard shell of these wonderful characters, there was no going back. Love and hope pushed and squeezed its way in with no way to stop it. When reality hit and they knew they were goners, all they could do was try to fix their mess and hold on tight. Nothing would stop the inevitable pull towards each other. For them, it was ultimately full steam ahead or nothing.

Brody is hoping for a good season with his team. He needs to keep pushing ahead in order to continue playing at home and retire in the near future. The last thing he needs is a distraction as utterly breathtaking and captivating as Lily. She needs to leave as soon as they are done working together for his sanity. Lily is not one to leave something undone when it comes to the care and well being of the dogs she looks after. She is a fierce protector, and she somehow convinces Brody to do more then he ever would have imagined. With everything on the line, can these two come out unscathed with their hearts intact, or will insecurities and past pain destroy their brilliant chance at a once in a lifetime love?

I have to say it was so easy to fall in love with the big teddy bear Brody and his heart of gold. He was lost and longing for a love that would be true and lasting. However, Lily was hoping to skip through life without ever being touched by people again. She locked her heart away, and made it impossible to be found and claimed by one as loving and hopeful as Brody. They had a long road to travel, but it was so worth every tear and painful moment. What they found in each is something most only hope to see -a unicorn love.

Tricia Lynne has stolen my heart, and I want to become lost in her spectacular worlds. She writes about real people dealing with real issues all the while nearly tripping on a love they just can't walk away from. These are stories that I am desperate to read because they are real, and I can see myself in their shoes. This tells me that anything is possible, and that love is truly for anyone who longs for it. If you want to find stories for the average, every day person, this is your author. She will speak to your heart and give you the encouragement to never give up.

I am all in my feelings about this story. If you are a sports romance fan this is for you. If you are an dog lover, this is for you. If you like a friendship to lovers book, this is the story for you.
This is set around the Dallas Bulldogs football team and one of their star players, Brody Shaw. Brody, has earned the spotlight on the field and hated it off the field. Portrayed as a notorious playboy his luck has finally caught up to him. The teams bosses are not happy with Brody, and have given him a 3 strikes order and Brody, is on his last strike. Strike 2 came with his rescue dog bites the dog sitter and bad press follows .
Lily Costello, is the daughter of one of the best football players to have ever played on the Dallas Bulldogs. She is also the step daughter of the GM of the team. Lily has ZERO interest in having anything to do with the team and that includes Brody Shaw. But when she gets the call to train a dog with a bite history, she is shocked to see Brody. One look at his beautifully damaged dog Lily knows she has to help.
Lily and Brody have a chemistry that is undeniable and they both know it and both know NOT to act on it. Lily has a job to do, get Brody and his dog CC, to a level of trust, but spending all this time with Brody is turning out to be more than Lily bargained for.
With pressure for her mother and step father, Lily is thrown into a web of lies and manipulation to get what they want. Lily, has only one goal in mind, get a no kill dog shelter set up to help as many animals as possible. Is she willing to sell her soul to accomplish ? Will Brody get his 3rd and final strike and be sent packing from Dallas. Will Lily and Brody more from friends to lovers?
This story has so much heart at the root of it. Lily and her love of dogs and their well being is felt on each page. There is an underlying sexiness that you feel with Lily and Brody are together and you want them to just give in. Brody is just so swoon worthy and you can't help but fall in love with him.
There is drama on and off the field and I am so excited for more to come.

Brody is a football player that unfortunately due to some recent trouble must keep his head down in order to finish out his career in Dallas.
Lily is a dog trainer who’s having a bad day , and to add to it she realizes her new client is none other than the Bulldogs football team linebacker Brody Shaw. Brody also happens to be Lily’s crush.
Brody and Lily have meet before. The chemistry between them sparks, however Lily is the general managers stepdaughter. Brody knows that it has to be hands off when it comes to Lily.
I loved the writing, and I was fully invested in these two. Protective Instinct is a sweet football contemporary romance. I love that this book takes an otherwise regular football romance, and brings light to the horrors of Puppy Mills. This quick reads is a journey for Brody and Lily as they try to find their HEA but also overcome their individual hang ups. 3.5 /5 star Read.

Brody and Liliana in Protective Instinct by Tricia Lynne
Brody is a pro football player with a big ole’ dog he needs trained, He rescued the dog, CC, by the side of the road and it is so obvious she has been maltreated. He turns to Liliana or Lilly. She is a dog trainer with roots in the pro football team he plays for. Her father was a player, her ex-fiancé works for the local team and she worked in sports medicine before becoming a dog trainer. They’ve always had an attraction but both guard their hearts - from human’s, that is.
The plot has many twists as Brody gets to know, work with and love CC while Brody and Lilly try to find the puppy mill that mistreats the dogs. There are some twists that involve the team as well. These make it very interesting. You won’t get bored.
The sexy parts are quite steamy and work within their context. The main and secondary characters are entertaining and fascinating. A big draw of these sports figure romances is the player and you will not be disappointed with Brady. The most fun point for me was Lilly’s stepdad, general manager for the sports team: Richard Head you knew everyone would call him Dick Head and they did and he was. The book has humor to wrap it up in a nice picture. I would recommend this book to my patrons although it may be too saucy for the library.

Hot football player and rescue pups, what more could you want??

Brody and Lily have been acquaintances for a long time, the chemistry sizzles but neither of them cross that line, until one poor abused Cane Corso comes into their lives and flips everyone’s world around.

I love that this book takes an otherwise regular football romance, and brings light to a constant deplorable issue the world is dealing with, puppy mills are one of the most horrific problem plaguing the world.

Lily and Brody work together to overcome, or at least attempt to overcome, all their hang ups and work out a HEA in their love story, and that conclusion, the villain?! Psh didn’t see that coming! Well done!!

Lily is a dog trainer ( really she trains the people who take care of the dogs) who’s having a rough day and it gets even worse when she realizes her new client is none other than the Bulldogs football team linebacker Brody Shaw, who just so happens to be her crush. Brody and Lily have met before and have a great chemistry but right know Brody is in his own set of trouble with false scandals giving him a bad rep and a new rescue dog that he doesn’t know how to handle ( although he desperately wants to). Having grown up with a football playing dad and her general manager for the team stepdad Lily knows all about moves that football players like Brody make and even though her heart says yes her mind says no, but she can’t deny the love that Brody has for his dog CC and begins to help him, falling for him more along the way. As the story progresses their chemistry heats up until I felt like pulling out a fan. I can’t stress to you how much I liked this book. There was a lot of information about dogs but it was blended really well with the characters actions. There is also a nice balance of heat and humor with a sprinkle of action as the two try to stop a puppy mill. I highly recommend this book and hope (fingers crossed) that there will be another book coming about another certain football player . 5 stars, must read. I received an arc copy of this book from NetGalley and the publisher for my honest review.

This was such an interesting book. With a dog trainer heroine and a football player hero, this story has elements of several romance sub-genres but blends them all to create a lovely and satisfying read. There was heat and humor and action and, best of all, dogs! I loved it!

fully enjoyed Brody and Lily’s story. He is a football player that unfortunately due to some recent incidents has to keep his head down in order to finish out his career in Dallas. One of the things that has happened is the dog he rescued but the dog sitter. So he ends up with Lily to help him and he already knows her. In fact they have lots of chemistry together but unfortunately she is the general managers step daughter and he can’t cross that line. The two team up to find a puppy mill and sparks continue to fly. I loved the writing and I was fully invested in these two. They definitely have a lot of emotional baggage in the past which bleeds into the possibility of a future together.

Brody Shaw is the middle linebacker for the Dallas Bulldogs--who's in trouble with his team after he got busted at a team orgy that made national news. The team's General Manager tells Brody he needs to keep IT his pants and staying out of the news unless he wants to find himself traded.

Then, a stray he rescued off the streets bites a pet sitter and it makes headlines. His PR manager hires a professional dog trainer to get his dog in line, but Brody didn't expect Lily Costello. The curvy hottie that warms his pants is also his general manager's stepdaughter--and the biological daughter of a former Dallas football legend.

She's the last woman he sh0uld get in bed with and the only one he can think about.

Brody Shaw is known for his "player" lifestyle and after growing up in football and watching her dad fall apart, Lily has no desire to get involved with him. or even train his dog. But when she finds the dog's belly was branded, she realizes that CC (the dog) escaped from a puppy mill. and she and Brody decide to team up to find and rescue the dogs.

If they can keep their hands off each other. Something easier said than done with Brody's job on the line, but when Lily starts getting threatening notes to back off the search,, Brody has to decide if lily is more important than football, and Lily has to choose between Brody and the dogs that need to be rescued.

This sounded like it could be a hard read, especially if your a dog lover, but the author did a great job leaving most of what happens to the Mill dogs to your imagination which I truly appreciated. Instead, she leads the reader to the info and let me make the choice of how far I go into the black hole, if at all. She does a good job of focusing on where shelter overcrowding problems really come from--The mills who churn puppies (who are often sick and stuff) , and though she advocates adoption, she doesn't judge someone for shopping from a good breeder. She gives a little insight into both the world of football as it affects player health, and the world of dog sports like agility.

Both of these characters are fully-fleshed out and lovable. The storyline was quick moving and left me with all the warm fuzzies and a HEA. The cast of dogs is so much fun and the secondary characters were great. I loved Hayes.

Tricia did a great job with this book. As a dog person, I loved every minute of it. Can't wait for the next in the series.