The Last Warrior by Susan Grant

A general betrayed by his king… A royal tutor playing a dangerous game…

As a decorated warrior, General Tal knows only one kind of honor—to his people. But when his king turns on him, he discovers that his sacrifices, his successes, may not have been for the good of the country at all. His only safe haven is with the rebels who despise him—at the hearthside of their standoffish, flame-haired leader.
Elsabeth serves the royal family, though her loyalties are with the staunchly pacifist Kurel who practice the forbidden arts of science and medicine. To avert a massacre, she’s forced to shelter General Tal, an illiterate barbarian, inside the ghetto—inside her home.
Then an age-old enemy returns, intent on destroying their world. The fierce warrior and the sensitive scholar must unite to save their planet, their people, and their love.