The Nanny with the Skull Tattoos by Elizabeth Barone Page A

down completely. When the water touched her head, though, she shrieked. Water sluiced over the edge of the tub, soaking Max as she thrashed in the tub. Gritting his teeth, he finished rinsing her off as quickly as possible, then plucked her from the tub. Wrapping her in a towel, he carried her to her bedroom, hugging her to his chest.
    “It’s okay,” he soothed, but she only cried harder. As he began toweling off, she unleashed an ear splitting shriek. “What’s wrong?” he asked her over the noise.
    “I’m cold,” she screamed.
    Max gaped at her. Usually Chloe was fairly even tempered. He had put her to bed at a normal time the night before. Remembering her tantrum when he still lived with his parents, he hoped she wasn’t entering the Terrible Twos—or Threes. Mouth hanging open at the thought, he dried her off, then began dressing her. His mother had bought Chloe a dress for Christmas Day, but something told him that he would never get those tights on her without losing an eye or his hearing, at the very least. He dressed her in soft fleece sweats and her favorite long-sleeved tee shirt.
    Sweat dampened his armpits and beaded at his hairline, but he didn’t have time for a shower. He dressed quickly in jeans and a tee shirt, grimacing at the impending comments from his family. His parents might not speak Spanish, but they were still strict Catholics and took Christmas very seriously.
    Scooping Chloe from the floor in the living room, he trotted into the kitchen. Savannah stood at the sink, scrubbing the sauce pan.
    “Hey,” he called softly to her.
    She glanced over her shoulder at him, an eyebrow raised. Steam rose from the water. Her hair was tied in a bun on the top of her head.
    “So I’m gonna head over to my parents’ house,” he said.
    She shrugged. “Okay.” She turned back to the sink.
    “I’ll see you later?” he asked, shifting Chloe to his other hip.
    “See you,” Savannah said, her words almost drowned out by the running water.
    Guilt pitted in the bottom of his stomach. He knew she didn’t have any plans. He opened his mouth to ask if she wanted to come with him, then closed it. His family would have too many questions, and he didn’t even know what his status with Savannah was. He didn’t want to put her through that. Still, he felt bad that she was spending the day by herself.
    Chloe released a shriek that pierced through his ears. She drew it out, holding it like a singer holding a note. Max winced. Shouting an apology to Savannah over the noise, he scrambled out of the house before Chloe broke any windows.
    * * * * *
    Guilt tugged at Max as he drove to his parents’ house, his shoulders drawn up to his ears. He should have just invited Savannah to come with him. It didn’t matter what his parents thought or said. Besides, he mused as he turned onto their street, they weren’t the type of people to say rude things to people they didn’t know. They might hassle him later, when Savannah wasn’t around, but to her face they would be polite and welcoming. Shame burned his cheeks. Not only had he left the girl he liked all alone on Christmas Day, but he had also assumed that his parents would behave poorly.
    He sighed and pulled into the driveway, behind one of his brothers’ BMWs. For the first time in his life, he was the last one to arrive to dinner. Compared to the other cars in the driveway, his Taurus looked like it was going to fall apart if someone sneezed on it. He wished his parents had bought him a nice car, rather than forcing him to buy his own. All of his brothers had gotten cars for their high school graduation presents. He had gotten a lecture, a box of condoms, and a baby shower.
    Max sighed again. It was time to let the past stay in the past. As he turned off the engine and pushed his door open, he promised himself that he would bring Savannah to the next family function. Usually, they got together for leftovers on the day after Christmas, anyway. He would