☕ Small Town, Sharp Edges — The Coffee Aisle Setup (Chapter 7 Free)

 Kippler’s Grocery. Familiar aisles. A neighbor who knows too much. Chapter 7 is a deceptively quiet slice of life—one that sharpens the contrast for what’s coming.

Olivia is home. But home has a way of exposing the seams—old connections, new pressures, and the uneasy feeling that normal has an expiration date.

👇 Read Chapter 7

SEVEN

Kippler's Grocery Store, Traverse City, Michigan

            Liv maneuvered the BMW X5 into a parking spot after her third lap around the lot. Traverse City had turned out in full force for the weekend grocery run. She pressed the ignition button, and the powerful engine fell silent. A moment later, she was navigating the busy aisles of Kippler’s Grocery Store. The mission: coffee, and it couldn't be just any coffee. It had to be the kind with the Greek Siren logo—dad's favorite.

As she finally located the coffee aisle and reached for a package, she heard a familiar voice from behind her. "Olivia Streeter, is that you?"

She turned, and there was Phyllis Watters—her old neighbor and a living archive of community gossip. The woman hadn’t changed a bit, still sporting large-framed glasses that could only be described as ‘grandmotherly.’

"It's me," Liv said, her hand still on the package of coffee.

"My, have you grown! I heard that you're going to be competing in the Olympics. How exciting for you!" Phyllis looked delighted, as if she'd stumbled upon a neighborhood secret that she could break on the evening news.

"Pretty amazing," Liv said, tucking the coffee under her arm, already strategizing her exit.

"And your father? I understand he remarried?" Phyllis didn't skip a beat, the nosiness that Liv remembered all too well bubbling up.

Ah, the classic Phyllis probing. "Yes, he did. He and Bianka are happy," Liv replied, leaving no room for further prying.

"That's wonderful to hear. Are you in town for long?" Phyllis probed again.

"Just the weekend," Liv said, lifting the coffee package slightly, as if to signal her agenda.

Phyllis caught the hint but pushed on. "Belle is home from college, she'd probably love to see you."

Liv held the coffee package more conspicuously, this time with a touch of urgency. "Really need to get this home. We're out, and mornings without coffee are...well, you know how it is."

"Of course, of course! I'll let Belle know you're in town," Phyllis said, finally recognizing the exit cues.

With a polite nod, Liv navigated her way around Phyllis and toward the checkout counters. It was good to see a familiar face, but Liv couldn’t afford to get wrapped up in local chatter. Her training, her future, and her family needed her to be focused, especially in a world growing ever more complicated.

As she moved toward the cashier, Liv couldn't help but think about the competing realms pulling at her—the past and the future, the simplicity of hometown gossip and the complex web of national and global expectations. But for now, at least one mission was accomplished: coffee.