The Two of Us (Love in Isolation 1)

“No, it’s okay. We need these things now unless you want to eat shitty microwave dinners for the next three weeks. You brought enough, but seriously, they’re kinda gross, and the chicken tastes weird after a while.” He gives me a look, and I snort.

“Remember the story about my mother? She would have a heart attack if she knew how much processed food I was eating here.” I chuckle.

Eli tilts his head at me. “You’re such a rebel.”

I finish adding things to the list, then hand it to him. “I was able to order a few masks before I came here. Do you want to take one?”

“Yeah, that’d be good,” Eli tells me, and I nod. I head up to my room to grab one while he grabs his keys.

When I return, he chuckles as he reads over the list. “Cadbury eggs. Mini Snickers bars. Reese’s cups. You’re not joking, are you?” He arches a brow.

“Hell no,” I retort, handing him the mask. “If so, buy out the store. There’s no dieting in quarantine. I’ve decided.”

He lets out a hearty laugh. “You are something else, Cami.”

“A hot mess and a handful? You’re welcome.” I glance over at the clock and then back at Eli. “Better get going. Maybe it won’t be so busy this morning, but they’re on restricted hours.”

“You’re right,” he says. Taking a few steps forward to close the space between us, he kisses me until I’m breathless, but I still want more.

When we break apart, I squeeze my arms around him tighter. “Please be careful out there.”

“I will. Don’t worry, I’m not fighting vampires or zombies,” he teases. “I grabbed my tiny bottle of hand sanitizer. Got a mask. And as soon as I get home, I’ll put everything up, sanitize the hell out of it, then strip down naked and take a shower.”

“Ooh, stripping. That sounds fun. Dicking me down later on that list too?”

“Only if you’re a good girl,” he throws back before tucking the small bottle back in his pocket and then folding the list and putting it in the other.

I kiss him goodbye one final time. Before he walks away, I grab a handful of his ass. “Hurry back.”

“If you keep that up, I might not leave.”

“Get out of here.” I playfully point toward the door. “And watch out for zombies.”

He shakes his head and throws me a wink. I watch as he leaves and frowns, immediately missing him.

While he’s gone, I pull out all the cleaning supplies and rubber gloves so we can safely unload the groceries when he returns. I’d come across a video online demonstrating the proper way to disinfect items, and I’ll watch it again before he returns.

After I have the counter ready for when Eli is back, my phone rings, and I’m giddy when I see it’s Ryan. I haven’t been able to get him off my mind, and it’s been a while since we’ve chatted. When I answer the phone, I’m a little too excited.

“Ryan!”

He chuckles but sounds defeated. “Hey, sis. Doing okay, still?”

“Yep, pretty much back to my old self,” I say happily.

“Ahh, so back to being a major pain in the ass,” he retorts.

I scoff. “That’s no way to talk to your favorite sister. How are you holding up?”

“I’m making it. I wanted to check in with you. How’s Eli?”

“He’s better. Not coughing nearly as much. He left not too long ago to get groceries. We were running out.”

He lets out a breath. “Good. I’m so relieved and happy to hear that. Hopefully, he’s being careful out there.”

“He is. I was really scared there for a few days. It was horrible, but he pulled through,” I say.

“Yeah, me too. I’ve been thinking about you two nonstop. Also, have you been watching the news?”

“I haven’t in a few days. It’s been depressing and wasn’t good for my anxiety. The stories throw me in a panic, so I’ve been trying to busy my mind with other things.” I’m happy I can quickly turn it all off but sad that Ryan can’t.

“Good. Don’t. We’re low on ventilators, and things are a shitshow. The governor has been begging other states to send some. Companies are supposed to be making them, but they can’t keep up with the demand. They set up tents in Central Park, Cameron. There’s a military ship coming to help treat those who need medical help since the hospitals are at capacity. It’s like living in the twilight zone,” he says, his voice flat.

“Oh no,” I whisper, ignoring his orders and going into the living room. I sit down on the couch and turn on the news, and he’s right. I put it on mute, but I see the images of the tents and the boat. My mouth falls open in shock. I’ve never seen anything like this in my life. “Ryan, please be—”