He liked the sound of his name on Jack's lips, and maybe the other was right. He was so scared of starting real friendships here, that fear of them leaving like Chekov and Kitty, that perhaps he had only sought the physical to shield him from the rest. He knew he could like Jack, a lot, and so the fear had risen, even if he didn't know it.
A snort at that, rolling his eyes at Jack. "And yet somehow I have the utmost faith you'll manage to work yourself out of the Gordian knot you've gotten yourself into."