Chapter 44

**The Breaking Point**

The tension in the Hayes household was palpable, like a tightly wound spring ready to snap. Claire and Ethan had spent the last few days barely speaking, their once strong partnership strained to its breaking point by the looming decision over the shop’s future. Samuel and Lillian, desperate to keep the family together, had thrown themselves into rallying the community, but the weight of their parents’ divide hung over them like a storm cloud.

As the morning sun filtered through the kitchen windows, Claire sat alone, her coffee growing cold in front of her. She was exhausted—emotionally drained from the constant battles at the shop and the widening rift with Ethan. Her mind raced through every conversation, every argument, replaying their last confrontation in the shop.

She couldn’t believe they had come to this point. Claire had always seen her and Ethan as a team, an unbreakable unit that faced every challenge together. But now, with Ethan moving forward with