"What? No," he paused, then realized how that sounded. "Wait. Thing is, I never really thought about it until I spent leave with you. Here and there before that, you know. I didn't think you were interested and I didn't really know for sure so I just never tried."

When he was actively and consciously wooing someone, he tried too hard. This was completely accidental.

"I've thought about it more now," he admitted, swallowing slightly. "I just couldn't tell what you wanted and I didn't want to push."