At least it wasn't "thanks" lol

I was gonna tell my bf that but with this one its different I don't feel like I'm in love with him enough to say it n I'm afraid ima scare him off

Did you "bark" or "ruff" as your reply?

Meh make him work real hard for that next bj. He will tell you when he's there lol

Sorry OP. I think you should talk to him, maybe open up with, "It's okay if you are uncomfortable saying that you love me back, but please TELL me that and don't just pat me on the head like I just did some sort of cute trick." I consider my self lucky that I found a guy who will actually man up and use his big boy words to tell me what he is thinking or if he is uncomfortable or annoyed or upset, etc. Everyone needs to learn to communicate. A smile and a pat on the head is not communication, it's just demeaning when you've just been told something that your significant other considers to be really important. Also, just accepting it and not clearly stating that you are upset with his actions is also a bad move.

maybe you said it to early..? he may feel the same way soon enougj but if the pat on the was all it was then u should dump him

I understand how that feels, OP. I learned the hard way from my first relationship to always wait for the guy to say it first...whether you actually have feelings like that for them or not, it's so much better that way.

Dump that condescending asshole.

I think you might be going about this the wrong way, you might not know if he means it in an endearing way or not. I've seen couples like that and they're fine and happy. you might be interpreting it the wrong way. but just my opinion

In some countries, patting you on the head means he's silently calling you a dog.