Protecting What's His

Line of Duty Series, Book 1

By: Tessa Bailey

Narrated by: Alice Chapman

She’s running from the law, and the law wants her bad.

The opportunity was just too damn delicious for Ginger Peet to pass up. The purse full of money she finds - $50,000 to be exact - could give her and her teen sister the new start they need. So she grabs the cash, her gothy sibling, and their life-sized statue of Dolly Parton, and blows outta Nashville in a cloud of dust. Chicago, here we come...

Turns out, Chicago has some pretty hot cops. Hot, intense, naughty-lookin’ cops like Derek Tyler, who looks like he could eat a girl up and leave her begging for more. And more. Tempting as he is, getting involved with the sexy homicide lieutenant next door poses a teensy problem for a gal who’s on the lam. But one thing is certain - Derek’s onto her, and he wants more than just a taste.

And as far as he’s concerned, possession is nine-tenths of the law.

©2013 Tessa Bailey (P)2014 Tantor

Critic reviews

"Scorching hot, and lough-out-loud funny!" (Katee Robert)

No storyline and not any romance

I can tell most folks don’t agree with me on this book but what the heck here goes my review. This book is not romantic – raunchy maybe – but definitely not romantic. I was not thrilled with the language in this book. There is a lot cussing and not just when Derek is using dirty talk to get Ginger in bed.

I feel mislead by the title in I was expecting a CR that resulted in of course the need for the guy to save the day. That is not what I got. Most of what Derek does that I think the author finds romantic is being obsessive with some borderline stalking. His jealously is so annoying that I just didn’t like him.

Ginger is portrayed as this strong independent female, your basic good girl from the wrong side of the tracks who will do anything to keep her sister safe. That is not what you get. She doesn’t take crap off anyone which I like unless its Derek and he basically walks over her because she finds him too sexy to resist.

So for me it was just an average book that was saved by the relationship between Ginger and Willa.

The narrator, Alice Chapman did a good job with the voices and with the Tennessee accents but a lot of the characters from Chicago still had a little bit of a southern twang to them.

I enjoyed the entire series

If the audio was bad (sound track problems) they aren't any longer.
This was one of those series that I just can't enough of. I know there's one more book in this series His to Claim, but I'm not sure of it's being made into an audio book.
These are the feel good type of listens, with romance, suspense, humor, and amours (in other words HOT) scenes.
I liked them because there is a pleasant story line to each of them. Nicely that each is different than the other as well.
I would definitely recommend all four of these books.

Liked this.

I liked this. Obviously new writer and narrator. The story was good, with time this will be a great writer. Narrator needs to use a little more inflection. Worth a listen.

Good premise

I really enjoyed listening to this. The narrator did ok. The storyline was interesting to me and I enjoyed the sisters relationship. The ending seemed a bit out of left field bc I feel Ginger would be more street smart for sure. That actually took me out of the story so I wish there had been another way to resolve the issues. Otherwise, fun romance with a little suspense.

Caught and punished by the bossy cop

“Dolly said if you want the rainbow, you gotta put up with the rain.”
Ginger’s a southern girl who’s down on her luck but hasn’t lost her pluck.
Good thing too, because feisty banter is my jam.

“I want to be buried inside you so deep that I have to remind you of your own name.”
Just call him Lt. Dom because Derek’s all about being bossy between the sheets … or rather everywhere but in bed. In the hallway, while driving, assuming the arrest position at the counter… it’s all about needing her now and not being able to wait to get to the bedroom.

“I can’t seem to control myself long enough to show you it’s not just about sex.”
Well, at least he’s self aware. Yep, insta lust, insta dom, and lotsa dirty talk. This puts the sex before the story, which isn’t a bad thing. For a quick, free listen, this delivers great popcorn romance.
See also Protecting What’s Theirs, a fun “book 5” novella epilogue for this couple.

Story was great

Loved the story. Loved the live. I wasn’t a huge fan of the narrator for the audio. Her southern character voice was great. But the rest of it was meh for me personally.

Couldn't finish

I have 3-4 hours left and just can't do it. The character development was just not there in my opinion.

Tessa never disappoints

Tessa Bailey is one of the few author I will buy a book from without reading it first. Absolutely loved the story. The narrator though…was not my favorite. The emotions she used didn’t always align with what the characters were going through and her southern accent was painfully overdone :/

Not her best

Did not care for the narrator, it did get somewhat better with narration. The story was just okay.

Pretty good

Enjoyed the storyline of this girl moving in to the building where her neighbor is a cop. And the reason why she was able to get a place in the building is because she stole a lot of money. I thought the dynamic between the two was quite cute, him being a grumpy rule following cop, and her coming from a broken home where she has trust issues and her having to make her way in the world anyway she could. I also thought her sister was also a very cute secondary character. Even though the story was really great I can see how it can be forgettable. Not my favorite Tessa Bailey book but it was still pretty good.