Application shortcuts keep changing target drive

Drive C is for Windows 7, Drive D is for applications, and Drive E is for data. Drive D is the default installation drive in the registry. Some programs don't give an option and install on Drive C, and sometimes I make a mistake and install on Drive C. Two Drive C programs in particular cause problems with shortcuts - Firefox and Chrome. As soon as I create a shortcut and drag it to the taskbar, the target drive in the shortcut reverts to Drive D. The target drive should be
"C:\Program Files (x86)\Google\Chrome\Application\chrome.exe"
Instead, it becomes
"D:\Program Files (x86)\Google\Chrome\Application\chrome.exe"
I can edit the shortcut or create a new one, but it immediately reverts to Drive D as a target. I know I can completely uninstall both applications and reinstall on Drive D, but is there an easier solution?
Thanks in advance for any ideas.