Met the band after a concert when Benoît David was the lead singer. Missed out on Steve Howe - apparently doesn’t like the meet & greets.
Perhaps protecting his hands. Seems rather personable on stage.
I’ve met with Howe a few times, both after solo concerts. He’s very very nice, but a bit neurotic about someone hurting his hands (I guess a fan squeezed his hand really hard during a handshake).