Page 47 of Isolation

“What the fuck! Is that a roach?”

I lean in closer to inspect and find a rubber cockroach on my seat.

“April Fools!” Raven smirks.

I give her the stink eye and throw the rubber roach in the trash can.

“Very mature.” I suppress a smile.

Mia and Raven loved practical jokes when they were young. One year they replaced my toothpaste with shaving cream. I got them back by donating a good chunk of their clothes to the Salvation Army.

Raven can do much better than this.

“That I am!”

“I expected more from you, Rave. This wasn’t even funny.”

“Well, I laughed when you jumped,” she grins. “And I didn’t have much time to prepare given my new hectic schedule. Next year,” Raven points her index finger at me.

Next year?

“Is this what you were teaching my little sister while she was visiting you in Paris?” I divert the topic, but my mind is racing behind her words—nextyear.

“No,” Raven responds casually. “I was teaching her how to pick up men.”

“You are not allowed to be around Mia anymore without proper adult supervision.” I give her a stern look, which Raven returns by flashing all of her teeth at me.

We dig into our food, but my eyes stay trained on her.Raven has never referred to the future before, adamant that this is all temporary. But now...

Next. Fucking. Year.

CHAPTER 6

-----------

Raven

After I completed some work-related tasks, I decided to give Uncle Reese a break and take over Tessa duty. I have been sitting by her bed with a tray of food for two hours, but I finally realize that it’s futile.

I close the door to her room and walk out with the tray of untouched food, only to bump into Milo in the hallway. It’s late, dark, and his silhouette nearly gives me a heart attack.

“Jesus Christ,” I grab my pounding heart with my right hand as Milo grabs the tray that I nearly drop. “You scared the shit out of me. Bell. Around your neck. Look into it.”

Instead of responding, Milo looks around for a place to put down the tray.

He looks through my open bedroom door and marches inside to presumably put the tray down.

Milo is being unusually quiet. I follow him inside but stop in my tracks as soon as I take in the room.

“Whoa, what happened here?”

Milo settles the tray on my desk table while I look around. My carpet has been replaced with hardwood floors. There is a beautiful rug in the middle of the room. When did he do all of this?

Milo absentmindedly looks around.

“I recruited Brandon and the dads to help me tear out your old carpet, and install hardwood floors. With a four-person crew, we were able to finish while you were working in the study. The rug was just an easy online order.”

“You know how to install hardwood floors?” I ask in astonishment.