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“Okay.”

“And well, Sandy would like to do something special for him for Christmas. So we wanted to ask you if perhaps you’d take some time out of your day sometime this month to give Bryan a little tour.”

I sighed. “It’s a real busy time, Terri.”

“Of course,” she said. “I understand. But it would mean the world to Bryan. He’s such a big fan!”

“Well, all right,” I relented. “Just an hour, though, okay?”

“An hour would be amazing,” Terri said. “Oh, Sandra’s going to be so thrilled. Thank you, Jesse.”

They arranged to stop over at the shop later that week, and I cleared a spot in my schedule to give the movie star and her godson the grand tour. I certainly wasn’t expecting anything romantic—while I knew who Sandra Bullock was, I wasn’t a fan. The only time I could remember seeing any of her movies, I’d been half-asleep on a plane.

“Excited to meet America’s sweetheart?” Bill Dodge kidded me.

“Huh?” I asked. “No, man. I don’t really dig movie stars. She’s probably kind of stuck-up, don’t you think?”

But when she showed up at the shop, I was immediately impressed by the big star’s warmth and friendliness.

“Hi!” she beamed at me brightly. “I’m Sandy. And this is my godson, Bryan! He’s really excited to be here. We both want to thank you so much for taking the time to show us around.”

“It’s no problem,” I said. “So, what do you think, Bryan? You want to take a look around?”

Bryan nodded quietly. He looked really nervous, and as I led him from room to room, detailing what went on in each section of the shop, he barely said a word.

“This is our paint booth,” I said, my hand on his shoulder. “That’s where all the finishing touches happen. Some of this paint costs like five hundred bucks a gallon—kinda pricey, huh?”

He just nodded.

“Over here’s our newest chopper. It’s still got a ton of work to go, or else I’d let you hop up there and see what it’s like to ride it. Do you like motorcycles?”

Bryan just blushed and toed at the ground.

“He’s pretty nervous, huh?” I whispered to Sandy.

“He’ll be fine,” she said, putting her arm around her godson. “Your shop’s really great, Jesse. It’s so intricate. And you’re in such a beautiful building, too. When was it built, do you know?”

“Actually,” I said, happy to supply her with the trivia, “this building was constructed in 1921. It’s an old laundry facility for the port of Long Beach.”

“Oh my gosh,” Sandy said. “That’s fascinating. You’re a part of history, over here.”

“We’re trying to be,” I said, smiling.

I had sort of figured that I’d feel like an indigent welder or something, talking to a big movie star, but Sandy made me feel very at home with myself. We continued to walk around the shop with Bryan, making easy conversation about Long Beach and the responsibilities that came with having a custom motorcycle business.

“And of course you have your television show to take care of, too.”

“Yeah, I’m getting kind of sick of that, though,” I admitted.

“Really? I can’t imagine why. It’s such an inventive, fun show. When Bryan told me he wanted to come visit you, I watched a few episodes—it’s really addictive.”

The more we spoke, the more under her spell I fell. Sandy was gorgeous, but in a natural, real way. And she was so authentic and easy to talk to that I found myself completely unintimidated. In fact, I was having the time of my life gabbing with her. By the time I looked up, the hour had passed without my realizing it.

“Well, okay, Bryan,” I said, somewhat regretfully. “This concludes our tour. I sure hope you had fun.”

The little boy just looked up at me and nodded.

“He had a great time,” Sandy said, smiling, poking her godson playfully in the side. “We both did.”

The minute Sandy and Bryan left, I went into my office and sat behind my desk, grinning like an idiot. I just couldn’t wipe that smile off my face.

“Terri?”

“Yes, may I ask who’s speaking?”

“This is Jesse James.”

“Oh, Jesse, hi! How did everything go with Sandra?”

“Really great,” I said. “Listen, can