Beck Rowan needed a change of scenery. He had lost his job in Charlotte as a result of corporate down-sizing and his relationship with Liz Seigal was going nowhere. If there was ever a time to pursue his dream of living in the Conch Republic and pay the rent by singing Jimmy Buffett songs in a water-front bar, this was it. After a few wild days in Ft. Lauderdale with his college roommate, Beck's life began changing as he drove along the Seven Mile Bridge through the Florida Keys. Upon reaching his final destination of Key West, his plan was to get a quick bite to eat and then look for a place to live. He turned right on Caroline Street, parked his car and happened to see a sign for an apartment for rent in front of one of those "old Key West" style homes named The Dalliance. He bounded the three steps to the front door and entered a lobby that could have been his grandmother's home back in Ohio. A few seconds after ringing the little tin bell on the front desk, Jeannie Fireman appeared from a back room but Beck could only stand there and stare at an aura surrounding this beautiful young woman. He didn't fully understand what was happening in those first few moments but the changes in his life were, at once, permanent.
