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There are expectations in literature, when it comes to genre. A reader who opens a novel billed as romance can expect the main two characters to fall in love, no matter how they begin. To do otherwise is to betray the audience's trust.
Monte Cristo is only suited for a tale of vengeance and hatred. Yet he knows with the same certainty that if he could fall in love with anyone, it would be Fujimura Ritsuka.
Edmond Dantes was a different aspect of him, but he was not an Alter. They are distinct enough to be summoned separately, and he does not share his memories, but ultimately they are the same person. They have the same star. The qualities that made Dantes devote himself to opening Ritsuka's path are qualities that strike at the few tender parts of Monte Cristo that remain.
(He doesn't share his memories, but he doesn't need to to know how Dantes felt for them. It was obvious to anyone with eyes to see and a heart to listen.)
He knows too that his time here is limited. That soon enough his flames will sputter out and disappear. Whether he treats his Master with warmth or keeps them at a distance, that won't change.
And has Ritsuka not already lost enough people who loved them? What selfishness, what cruelty would it be to fall in love with them, knowing that he can't stay? It would only hurt them in the long run, for the sake of a fleeting shadow.
-Ah, but Monte Cristo is a cruel and selfish man. That is why he knows he is bound to love them.