I feel like this too. My bf and I aren't apart for weeks really, but we basically only see each other on weekends. We've also been together 1.5 years. I wish he would say I love you or something, but the best I get is a heart on MSN or Facebook. I need some kind of validation, and it seems like you do too. I don't know what to tell you since I feel like I have the same problem and I don't know what to do, but I know for me, it's getting to be very trying. And distance, I imagine, would make everything harder. Harder to stay close, harder to feel good about the relationship.
You are being reasonable in your desire to hear your bf loves you. Absolutely. And I understand totally about the not wanting to ask him to say these things, because you're right, you can't really know if he's just going to say it because he knows you want him to, and not necessarily because he wants to.
I feel like eventually, I'll crack, and things will either have to change, or we'll split. No point being with someone if you're constantly questioning their feelings for you. At the same time, my own fear or confronting him or saying anything may be making things worse?