I just started playing Skyrim and when go to search a body, it doesn't go to inventory, I seem to be dragging the corpse, and anything I try to pick up. Whatever I pick up doesn't go to my inventory but just hovers above while it follows me. I play on a laptop but that has never happened with the other Elder Scrolls games.

Are you... are you holding the button down?

Indeed, tap the button to pickup / take, and hold it down to grab / hold.