You probably don’t need a whole-house softener if the main concern is drinking water from the kitchen. I’d look at an undersink carbon block setup first, especially one that works with a normal kitchen faucet and standard cartridge sizes. That way you’re not treating every shower or laundry load when you only care about the water you drink. I found this lead water filtration system* while comparing options, and what seemed practical was the stainless undersink unit plus carbon block cartridges that fit common housings. I’d check what the cartridge is rated for, whether it’s NSF/ANSI 42 certified, and whether replacements are easy to get later.