Is it weird for a guy to say he’s afraid to take things too far but then definitely get hard around me?

Anonymous
My friend is dating this guy, and this guy has a friend. The four of us hang out a lot. My friend and her boyfriend are pretty serious. I have a crush on her bf’s friend. The friend and I have hung out together, he buys me dinner, we cuddle on the couch at his place, etc. I asked him one night if cuddling was all he wanted to do. He told me he likes me and likes being my friend, but he’s afraid to take it too far with us being part of like a group I guess. He continues to cuddle me when we hang out, and I’m pretty sure last time we hung out he was hard when he gave me a hug goodbye. I don't know, I really like him and see him as someone who could be a potential partner, so I don’t want to reduce it to just sex, but at the same time I find it to be an important part of the relationship. And I also don’t know if he’s only interested in sex and that’s why he doesn’t want to take it too far or what.
Is it weird for a guy to say he’s afraid to take things too far but then definitely get hard around me?
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