I think Pete likes Lea as a friend and is also the sort of person who wouldn't want to deliberately hurt someone's feelings. So he's very sensitive to the feelings of someone else when he speaks to them.
I think he has let Lea know that he is flattered that she fancies him but he doesn't think of her that way.
I don't want to hear "It's maternal" off Lea another time. She and her oilies need to take a cold shower!
