It's hard to know if we are getting your point precisely Bob. Are you decrying the scenario of having a relationship like a chess game where you make all the right moves? Sure that is a bit mechanistic by any standard. I'm all for LTRs.
Perhaps my answer to your question would be sure you can communicate those feelings. But don't use words. Men can communicate through action. Again the women say this is our flaw. But they don't really want you to spit it out that way. If you feel the need to get verbose maybe you should try something strong. As an example, when my LTR brought up something about her past I said "You're my property now, I own you." I could have said, " I trust you and care for you." But, for one thing, the language which I used was open to any interpretation she wanted to put on it. So, in that way I let her decide what to make of my feelings, and that probably is more likely to meet with her requirements than guesswork on my part about what she would like to hear.
Perhaps my answer to your question would be sure you can communicate those feelings. But don't use words. Men can communicate through action. Again the women say this is our flaw. But they don't really want you to spit it out that way. If you feel the need to get verbose maybe you should try something strong. As an example, when my LTR brought up something about her past I said "You're my property now, I own you." I could have said, " I trust you and care for you." But, for one thing, the language which I used was open to any interpretation she wanted to put on it. So, in that way I let her decide what to make of my feelings, and that probably is more likely to meet with her requirements than guesswork on my part about what she would like to hear.