However, he didn’t limit himself and took over running the family company when his father asked him to.After taking over as CEO, Prince expanded the company from a single industry into a conglomerate, competing with the top families from Maine to New York and putting the Sullivan family on equal footing with the Hamilton family.
For Prince, it was nothing new to be in the rat race with the Hamilton brothers.He had been competing against Tyler and Lucas since they were kids, always one-on-two.Sometimes he won, sometimes he lost, but it was always in good fun between friends, even in business.His competitive streak turned him into a workaholic, which left him little time for romance.Even in college, while his two friends were playing the field, Prince was busy building his family business and getting married, fulfilling his family obligations.
It wasn’t that he was jaded about love because of his divorce.It was that he hadn’t found the right one.Prince had known Nova was not the one when they got married.Their marriage had been out of obligation to his family, specifically to his grandfather, who wanted to see his only grandson marry his best friend's daughter.He had hoped they would bless him with a grandson, and all of that had come to fruition.
Although Prince and Nova were friends, they were not sexually attracted to each other and relied on IVF to conceive.That decision was kept from everyone, even Bevin, to this day.Nova became pregnant with twins on the first try, but due to complications, one of the fetuses didn’t make it.
For years, Prince and Nova put on a good show for their family, pretending they were deeply in love, until they could no longer keep up the act.It shocked everyone when they announced their divorce when Bevin was eleven.Prince knew the divorce had hurt Bevin and put a slight strain on their father-son relationship, but it was no one's fault.Prince and Nova were ready to live in their truth.
He and Nova shared custody of Bevin, so Prince pushed himself at the company and the university.He enjoyed both jobs, which kept him extremely busy, but his mind sometimes wandered to other things, like love.
He had been in a relationship with his assistant for two years after his divorce.However, when Prince found out his assistant was embezzling funds from the company, he had no problem sending him to prison, which instantly ended the relationship.
Oddly, Prince was not broken up about it.Their relationship had not been known by anyone inside or outside of the company, yet he still felt he had wasted two years on a man who was greedy and not looking for love.He had had lovers and hookups, but nothing meaningful.It had been a while since he had sat, laughed, and talked with someone all night about everything before making love until dawn.
He would be lying if he said he wasn’t jealous of Nova, who had found new love and started another family after their divorce.Then again, she was not the only one in his circle who was married with children or had a couple on the way.
Take his friend Lucas Hamilton, who, years after his wife died and left him a single father, found love again in Tucker Stevens, an FBI agent.Prince didn’t want to think about all his other friends who were living in marital and familial bliss.
Maybe I’m just lonely, and taking time off from my job was a gut reaction.
"Prince, are you listening to me?"Roderick asked.
"Sorry," Prince said, a hint of embarrassment crossing his face."I was thinking about something.What did you say?"
"I asked if we're still on for dinner," Roderick repeated.
"Um, let's take a rain check," Prince said, glancing at Finn, who had ordered a burger with fries while his mind drifted elsewhere."I'm feeling tired."
"Oh," Roderick said, looking down at the table."I guess I'll call you later."
"Yeah, let's finish our talk tomorrow," Prince said distractedly as he reached for a napkin and was about to dab at the ketchup smudging the corner of Finn's mouth.His hand froze midway when he became aware of what he was about to do.Thankfully, the kid had his head down and didn’t notice Prince's slight movement.Finn was so focused on eating that he licked the red liquid from the corner of his mouth.Prince's gaze latched onto the pink swipe of his tongue, and he looked away when his name was called.
"Prince."
He looked away from Finn and was surprised to see Roderick still standing there, when he had assumed he had already left.
"Is there something else?"Prince asked, his brows drawing together.
Roderick stared at him without speaking, and it made Prince more irritated than he cared to admit.
"No, I guess not," Roderick said softly, then glanced at Finn before walking away.
What the hell is that all about?He watched Roderick walk away.
"If you cancelled your date because of me, you shouldn't have.I’ll be all right on my own."
Prince sighed."First, it wasn't a date.Second, it had nothing to do with you.I'm exhausted."
"Are you sure about that?"Finn asked, dipping his French fries in ketchup and stuffing them into his mouth.
Prince's brows furrowed."What are you asking that I'm not getting?"
"Mr.Sullivan, I might not know many things about romance.Well, scratch that, I know nothing about relationships."He shrugged."I've never been in one.But I've seen Bevin break a lot of hearts since we've been friends, and that guy looked disappointed when you broke off your dinner plans with him."
Prince leaned back in his seat and looked at Finn seriously."What do you mean, you've never been in a relationship?"
Finn shrugged."It's just never happened.I've been more focused on my studies."
