Hunter's Season (Elder Races, #4.7) by Thea Harrison

Hunter's Season (Thea Harrison)

SUMMARY

As a palace guard and assassin for the Dark Fae, Xanthe always wore a mask, hiding her emotions to do her duty. But when her identity is compromised, she trades undercover work for guarding Queen Niniane—a position that often brings her in contact with Chancellor Aubrey Riordan.

Aubrey’s trust is shattered. A year ago his wife tried to assassinate their new queen in his name, a betrayal of everything he believes in. And now an attack on his life is proof the dark conspiracy is not yet over. Although injured and weak, Aubrey can’t help but be drawn to this shy assassin and loyal protector. Xanthe is everything Naida wasn’t, and the passion she stirs in him is something he thought had long passed him by.

MY REVIEW

Aubrey and Xanthe

Xanthe is an assasin/guardian for the fae court and she works for Niniane and Trago. We met her at Devil's Gate.
Chancellor Aubrey was going to be a king if Niniane did not accept becoming a queen. As we have seen in Storm's Heart, Aubrey is a good person while his wife was evil and she was plotting against Niniane. Now his wife is dead and he does not plan to have another one until he meets Xanthe.
Xanthe is assigned to him by Niniane for protection and after a brutal attack, the two of them will spend a lot of time together at Xanthe's cottage until Aubrey recovers.
Aubrey does not hide his interest in Xanthe, while she thinks that she is not good enough for him:

Don't play with me just because you're bored.

Aubrey feels too old and tired, but he finds Xanther irresistible:

I'm falling in love with you. And damn, it's a deep deep fall.

This is a slow burn romance that takes place in the Dark Fae Realm. It is so sweet and beautiful the way the love grows. It should definitely have had to be a longer novel, but still it is engaging and heartwarming.