[ He can tell by the tone of Loki's voice that he knows just as well as Chris does that there's no way he could take him up on the offer, no matter how tempting it sounds. Service and sacrifice are the first two pillars of the tenets of Starfleet, at least as Chris believes in them, and there's no way he'd be who he is if he was able or willing to turn his back on people who rely on him. ]

That sounds really nice, it does. [ He leans in to kiss Loki gently, chaste and soft. ] But I can't abandon my crew, not when they need me most. I made a promise to them and I'm going to keep it.