“Thank you, Mr. Koç.”  Bess knew very little about Aslan’s own family and was surprised when he mentioned that his sister was interested in courting.  She’d had no idea he even had a sister.  She wondered if the young woman had ever visited the shop.  Unless they were buying something and she needed the information for her records, she never asked for her customers’ names.

“I’m afraid I don’t,” she said with an apologetic smile.  “Most of the men who come in here buy jewelry for their sweethearts.  My husband might know a few young gentlemen.  If you would like, I’ll ask him when he returns from London.”

Bess felt a bit guilty that she didn’t know any single gentlemen, while Aslan seemed to know several men who could guard her shop.  “As long as he’s trustworthy and won’t fall asleep at the job, I don’t really care about his religion.”