Pope Claudius's heart skipped a beat upon hearing Aldrian's question. He inwardly wanted to cry because he did not know how to answer it!
There was no way he could just say, "Well, my daughter said she likes you, and this has been weighing on my mind. Maybe you could add her to your harem? I hope you don't mind it."
He did not know how Aldrian would react after hearing that, and he did not want to make their relationship awkward.
What if Aldrian distanced himself from Angelica if he knew about it?
That would be a sad situation for her, as she already seemed to like him deeply from her stories. He did not want her to be sad, he wanted her to stay happy beside Aldrian. After hearing Angelica's story about how she felt toward Aldrian, he knew that her feelings for him ran much deeper.
