Changing the Key: A Detrimental Rock Star Romance (Book 1) Read online

  Changing the Key

  A Detrimental Rock Star Romance (Book 1)

  April Michelle

  Copyright © 2021 April Michelle

  All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, uploaded, or distributed in any manner whatsoever without written permission from the author, except in the case of a brief quotation embodied in reviews.

  This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, organizations, or persons, living or dead, is coincidental. References to real people, events, organizations, establishments, or locations are intended to provide a sense of authenticity and are used fictitiously.

  The author acknowledges the trademark status and trademark ownership of all trademarks, service marks, and wordmarks mentioned in this book. All song titles, songs, and lyrics mentioned in the novel are the property of the respective songwriter and copyright holder.

  ISBN 9798518011847

  To everyone who survived 2020 with dignity and grace…while secretly wishing you could run away from home. This was my escape. I hope you found yours.

  Contents

  Title Page

  Copyright

  Dedication

  From the Author

  Playlist

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Epilogue

  Acknowledgment

  About The Author

  From the Author

  Content Warning:

  This book contains material that is intended for a mature, adult audience. It contains graphic language, explicit sexual content and adult situations.

  Trigger Warning:

  This book contains a brief sexual assault and conversations regarding a drug overdose. These topics may be sensitive for some readers.

  Playlist

  “Friend Like Me” ~ The Interrupters

  “Can’t Stop” ~ Red Hot Chili Peppers

  “No Shoes, No Shirt, No Problem” ~ Kenny Chesney

  “Nothin’ But A Good Time” ~ Poison

  “Summer” ~ Calvin Harris

  “Don’t Threaten Me With A Good Time” ~ Panic! At The Disco

  “Dr. Feelgood” ~ Mötley Crüe

  “Angel” ~ Aerosmith

  “Crazy Train” ~ Ozzy Osbourne

  “Crash Into Me” ~ Dave Matthews Band

  “T.N.T.” ~ AC/DC

  “Enter Sandman” ~ Metallica

  “Youth Gone Wild” ~ Skid Row

  “Edge of Desire” ~ John Mayer

  “Best of You” ~ Foo Fighters

  “Pomp and Circumstance- Rock ver.” ~ Y. Takanashi

  “All In” ~ Lifehouse

  “Livin’ On A Prayer” ~ Bon Jovi

  “I Wanna Be Sedated” ~ Ramones

  “Thong Song” ~ Sisqo

  “Millionaire” ~ Chris Stapleton

  “Don’t Stop the Party” ~ Pitbull, Tjr

  “SexyBack” ~ Justin Timberlake

  “Home” ~ Phillip Phillips

  “The Air That I Breathe”~ The Hollies

  Also Available on Spotify:

  Changing the Key

  Chapter 1

  Anna

  The biggest problem with long hours of manual labor was that I had too much time to think, to analyze, and to become intimately acquainted with that bitch, Hindsight. Most days, I could ignore her. As a positive person, I believed that everything happened for a reason. Sure, some of it sucked. But there were valuable lessons to be learned, and I always came out stronger on the other side. Still, a heads-up shouldn’t be too much to ask for from time to time.

  Elbow deep in soapy water, I shifted the weight on my aching feet and arched my tightening back as the teenage busboy unloaded yet another pile of dirty dishes. I pasted on a friendly smile to mask the strain of the past few months.

  “Hey, Anna.”

  “Hi, Patrick. How does it look out there?”

  “The dinner rush is over, so we should get out on time tonight.” Eyeing his empty dish bin, he rocked back on his heels, hesitant to leave. “Want to see my physics project?”

  “Absolutely!” Wiping my hands on my apron, I leaned against the sink as he opened a video on his phone. “Which one did you pick?”

  “I took your advice and went with the advanced assignment with extra credit. It’s been a lot of work but should bring my grade up enough for me to graduate.” With the tap of his finger, an elaborate chain reaction sequence played out on the screen.

  One slight tip of a domino sent countless objects falling, rolling, shifting, flying, and spinning. Sometimes there was a long pause between reactions, but ultimately something would set it all in motion again. At times, multiple things happened close together, while others were spread out over various distances. On and on it went, until everything that had been so carefully planned out became nothing but a giant mess to be cleaned up.

  “That was fantastic! I’m so proud of you.” Patrick was a good kid. He simply needed some encouragement and someone to believe in him. Didn’t we all.

  “Thanks.”

  The blush on his cheeks was endearing as he tucked his phone into his pocket and swiftly left me to my work. Though not the most glamorous job, I was thankful for it. The free meal each night was a nice bonus too.

  Robotically stacking clean dishes, the chaos of the kitchen dissolved into staticky white noise as I reflected on life. In my experience, it was a lot like Patrick’s video: a carefully orchestrated progression of cause and effect. But in real life, the stakes were much higher. One choice or action had the power to alter your entire trajectory. Then there was the added burden of knowing that each decision could also affect the people around you and vice versa. Some impacts were small, causing minor ripples, while others created a seemingly endless chain of events, leading to an inevitable mess to be cleaned up. It was certainly the perfect metaphor for my life.

  So where had my current mess begun? How far back could I trace the seemingly innocent decisions that had started me on my current path.

  Karl moving into my building had led to a dinner date. Minor ripples. Dating him, then accepting an invitation to travel with him and his friends, had launched more dramatic events. Indulging in questionable sushi at the buffet our first night in Daytona Beach triggered significant consequences. Besides the digestive pyrotechnics from food poisoning, my illness provided Karl with the opportunity to meet someone new during his endless beach bumming and bar hopping. Ultimately, his decision to follow his new lady friend to Orlando was the final kicker that sent my life into its recent tailspin.

  If any one of those things had not happened, I would be snug in my bed back home in Chicago. Instead, I had spent the past two months stranded, working endless hours, and struggling to get by. And each day, I crossed my fingers, hoped that better times were coming, and told Hindsight to kiss my a
ss since she wasn’t helping anything.

  “Order up, Anna,” Rocco called, announcing that my dinner was ready. My stomach growled at the sound of his voice, and my mood lifted. The bald, burly owner of Waves had a heart of gold and was a master in the kitchen.

  “Thank you,” I said, sliding my blackened chicken Caesar salad from the pick-up window. At the last minute, Rocco added a slice of key lime pie to the plate with my breadstick. He kept me well fed under his watchful eye.

  “Thirty minutes, Anna.” He pointed to the clock. “You better take your whole break tonight.”

  “No promises,” I teased. It was a nightly argument, but sitting still for too long made it that much harder to get going again. Once the exhaustion from the day set in, I was done.

  Settled into a corner booth in the back, I enjoyed my meal, humming along with the radio. Tonight, it was tuned to the local rock station with the DJ broadcasting from the music festival that had taken over the city.

  “We’re broadcasting live from Daytona International Speedway with all of your festival highlights. The line-up this year looks like a rock music lover’s wet dream! Borrowing Trouble is getting ready to take the stage to cap off the night. The rest of the weekend will be filled with non-stop music, including a doubleheader each night. Tomorrow night, Renewable Tool and Dodging Reality will take the stage. On Sunday night, Spunk Junky will be followed by Detrimental, who will close out the festival. Keep it tuned to WREX 96.3 all weekend long for your chance to win free tickets.”

  Recognizing all of the bands’ names, I knew the festival would be an amazing time for those lucky enough to attend. I tried to remember the last time I had enjoyed a night out, but nothing came to mind. Sadly, even trying to win tickets would be a waste since I had no one to go with. Texting with my best friend was the closest I was going to get to a good time tonight.

  Me: Missing you! Are you at work?

  Within seconds, my phone rang, Megan’s contact picture filling the cracked screen.

  “I was just thinking about you too!” Her voice filled the air before I even had the phone to my ear. “Please tell me you’re sipping a pina colada with a hot surfer.”

  Scanning the nearly empty restaurant, I noted a senior couple at one table and the haggard parents with their five hyper kids at another, but I didn’t want to shatter the image Megan had in her head of how I was spending my Friday night.

  “Did that last night,” I joked. “Tonight I’m flying solo and having a late dinner. All of the hot tourists are at the music festival in town.”

  “Ooh, maybe you’ll meet someone famous.”

  Laughter bubbled out of me. “I guarantee that nobody famous has a room at the Mystical Conch Motel, Megs.” Although I probably wouldn’t have recognized a famous musician if they were standing right in front of me. Sure, I enjoyed listening to music, but my days of fangirling were long gone.

  “Too bad.” She hesitated before continuing. “How much longer are you going to be stuck there?”

  Her overly laid-back tone did little to cover her concern, but I couldn’t blame her. I was more than a thousand miles away, essentially homeless, broke, and alone. Of course she was worried. And she didn’t even know the whole story. To protect her from additional worry, I had only shared the basic facts of my situation. She knew Karl and his friends had completely ditched me, sticking me with the motel bill since I’d booked our rooms with my debit card. Another mistake only glaringly obvious after the fact.

  Naturally, the motel owners had been irate when I couldn’t pay the bill. However, when they had threatened to have me arrested, I panicked, offering a compromise. They were short a housekeeper, so I agreed to work off the debt. The arrangement weighed heavily in their favor, but I didn’t see any alternatives.

  What Megan didn’t know was that things were worse than I’d let on. In addition to the barest of accommodations, I earned a paltry daily wage, which went directly towards my debt. Without any cash flow, I had to find extra work for my other expenses and to save up for a bus ticket home.

  It was a precarious system, but it was working. So far. In two weeks, the debt would be paid off. Then I could finally plan on getting home and back to my life there.

  I got into this mess. I would get myself out of it.

  “I’ll be home soon,” I hedged.

  The final customers of the night were finishing their meals as the staff began wiping down tables. I would be needed soon, but my feet thanked me for the small break. Propping them up beside me, they nearly wept with joy.

  “Anna, I’m serious. When?”

  I contemplated my answer, not wanting to lie to the one person in my life who had never let me down.

  “A few more weeks,” I admitted, hating the position I was putting her in. “I know it’s the first of the month. I sent as much of the May rent as I could through PayPal this morning. I’ll get the rest to you as soon as possible.”

  At twenty-five years old, I took pride in supporting myself and not feeling indebted to anyone for what I had. So having to ask Megan to cover part of my rent was a bitter pill to swallow.

  “Okay. I’ll do what I can to stall and try to cover the rest.”

  Guilt churned in my belly as I pictured her buttering up our landlord and picking up extra shifts at the sports bar where we both worked. Not that I expected to have a job to return to after such a long absence.

  “I owe you,” I promised, beyond sorry that my poor decisions were now affecting her.

  “You’ve done the same for me.”

  Even though that was true, it didn’t make it any easier to accept. We’d been through a lot over the past seven years, and she was the closest thing I had to family. I would do anything for her and, luckily, she felt the same way. Still, involving money had always been a sore spot for me.

  Her sorrowful sigh filled my ear. “I wish I could do more to get you home faster.”

  “Please don’t worry about me. If I was going to get stranded somewhere, I could have done a lot worse than a beachfront motel.”

  “It still sucks,” Megan grumbled. “Karl sucks. Every time I see him, he rushes past me. I think he’s afraid I’m going to push him down the stairs. It’s been tempting, but Dave says he’s going to handle it.”

  Though I appreciated Dave’s efforts, it was pointless to try to get anything from Karl at this point.

  “How is Dave?” I asked, eager to steer the conversation away from me. “Still the best boyfriend ever?” “He’s amazing. I’ve been staying at his place a lot more since you’ve been gone. We haven’t driven each other crazy yet, so I’d say things are going pretty well.”

  “You could never drive anyone crazy,” I assured her.

  Megan continued to gush about Dave while I fought the pang of envy. After a lifetime of emptiness, I had become a pro at ignoring the void in my heart. Besides, with my focus on school and my future career, I didn’t have time for much else. So I dated for fun, convincing myself that it was enough for now.

  Working and living together, we were as close as two people could be. Still, it was always meant to be temporary. We had become family, but even sisters grew up to lead separate lives. Megan and Dave’s relationship had grown serious, and the next logical step would be for them to live together. And I was genuinely happy for my friend. The downside was that it meant my time with her was almost over, and I had been mentally preparing myself for that inevitability.

  Noting the time on the clock, I smirked knowing Rocco would be pleased with me tonight. “I need to run,” I told her and wrapped up our conversation. “I’ll call again in a few days. Love you!”

  “Be safe. Love you too!”

  The dining room had emptied, so I sang along with “Can’t Stop” by Red Hot Chili Peppers as Patrick and I cleared off the last few tables. After the final load of dishes was done and I got everything back in its place, I tossed my apron into the laundry bin.

  “Thanks for the help, Anna. Wish it was more,” Rocco
said, handing me a small stack of cash. “Most of the weekend crowd is at the festival.”

  “No worries. I appreciate it along with the dinner.” I grabbed my backpack from behind the counter and added the money to my frighteningly empty wallet.

  “Be careful walking home.” He shook a finger in his usual fatherly way. “See you tomorrow?”

  “I’ll be here.”

  After all, I had nowhere else to go.

  Streetlights and neon hotel signs lit my path, offering a small measure of safety against the darkness. Plus, at just past ten o’clock, there was still plenty of activity on Atlantic Avenue. Patrons sang along to catchy beach tunes at hotel tiki huts on one side of the street as classic rock blared from bars with motorcycle-filled parking lots on the other. Though I didn’t have the time or funds to enjoy either type of place, I welcomed the soundtrack they provided for my nightly walk.

  Nearing a popular dining and entertainment area, the noise level grew. Crowds filled the sidewalks as the lights on the Ferris wheel blinked in the distance. Waiting at the crosswalk for the light to change, I replayed my conversation with Megan and tried to keep my emotions in check. So much of my time and energy were consumed with keeping my head above water that there wasn’t much leftover for being homesick. But late at night, when it felt like I was up against unbeatable odds, the crushing loneliness crept in.

  Even back home, there was no escaping the long hours I put in every day. That had been the norm since graduating high school, and I hadn’t let it stop me from enrolling part-time in college classes. Paying my tuition while supporting myself had just made it more challenging. And the results would be that much more rewarding. So the thought of nearly ruining all of my hard work, especially over a guy and an impulsive desire to finally see the ocean, made my stomach turn. It also reinforced the need to avoid any more distractions.