Roman: Book 2 (The Hunter Brothers Series) Read Online Free

in the Hunter closet were about to be released on the unsuspecting
brothers. My heart was pounding in worried anticipation and I wasn’t even
directly involved. The atmosphere in the room was suffocating as I cast a quick
glance at my sister who looked as uneasy as I did. We shouldn’t be here for
this, but I was frozen in my seat, unable to move.
    “Why would a
business so successful, run by two best friends, suddenly be destroyed
overnight by the one man who had worked so hard to create it?” Roman asked,
expecting them to piece the information together as they stared at him blankly.
    “Mum was having an
affair with Everett,” he announced to audible gasps and pained faces, looking
at each of the brothers in turn. Charlie shook his head, striding towards Roman
and facing him toe to toe, radiating anger from every pore.
    “Don’t you fucking
dare besmirch her name,” he spat as Roman pulled a face that was almost
apologetic, holding his ground.
    “It’s true. The
old man found out and went on a mission to destroy him; took the business from
under him piece by piece when mum confessed.” I looked across at Lucas who
slumped back against the couch with his head in his hands, having clearly
worked out where this was going.
    “What else
happened twenty seven years ago?” he asked as horror and realisation washed
across the faces of Charlie and Tyler as the full picture started to become
clear.
    “He told me less
than a week after she died. He’d always suspected I wasn’t his, but wouldn’t do
anything about it while she was still alive. As soon as she’d gone he had the
DNA test done, announced that I wasn’t a Hunter and told me to get out and
never come back. He threatened me that if I told you and ruined our mother’s
reputation; that he’d destroy me like he’d destroyed my father. I wasn’t
worried about that; he couldn’t touch me, but I was worried about how you’d all
react, so I took off until I could get my head around it.”
    The silence was
excruciating as each of them tried to come to terms with Roman’s epic
announcement. Everything they thought they knew was being twisted on its head
and I couldn’t even begin to appreciate what they were going through. Their Dad
had lied, their brother was fathered by someone else, and their late mother had
cheated despicably with the best friend of the man they’d just laid to rest. It
was mind blowing. I sat back, staring at the floor and wishing I was still
driving around Surrey. Avoiding suicidal mammals was preferable to this.
    It was different
for Jess, she was with Lucas, but I was only a friend of the family and felt
like I was encroaching on what should have been an intensely private time.
    I glanced at
Charlie who looked as lost as I’d ever seen him, resisting the urge to offer a
friendly, reassuring hug. He still looked like he was ready to punch someone.
For the second time today, I had absolutely no idea what to say or do.
    “It doesn’t change
anything, you’re still our brother,” Tyler said eventually, his eyes cloudy
with tears as he pulled Roman into a hug and Lucas was next. He said nothing,
conveying the depth of his feelings in the strength of his grasp, pulling away
as Roman looked at Charlie.
    “Charlie, he lied
to you. He hated that you were with Scarlett. She was just as bad as Everett in
his book. He obviously saw a way to remove us both from your lives,” he said as
Charlie just stood there looking defeated and deflated, his face gripped with a
pain that tugged at my heart.
      “I’m sorry, Roman,” he said eventually, moving
away to fill his glass with brandy, the atmosphere so tense that you could cut
it with a knife.
    “I still can’t
believe you actually thought I slept with Scarlett. My sister is a fucking
sociopath,” Roman laughed gently.
    “Don’t” Charlie
snapped, throwing him a warning glare but he paid no attention. It was
immediately evident that no one controlled Roman Hunter.
      “It’s