I'm too afraid to tell him. What should I do in this situation?

I met Michael in a very unorthodox way. Last summer, we were both involved in a three-car accident, and though Mike and the third driver were unharmed, I ended up spending a few days in the hospital. Michael came to visit me and introduced himself, but after that, we kind of drifted apart. A few months later, we discovered that we were in some of the same college classes. I was a 20-year-old sophomore taking the core curriculum courses in order to transfer to another school, and he was a 29-year-old cop who was enrolled for continuing education classes to further his career. We developed a very close relationship, talking inside of class, texting or talking on the phone outside of class, and visiting one another at work frequently. He's usually the first person I talk to in the morning, and I don't know what I would do without him. It's been a year since we met, and I am completely, head over heels in love with him. However, I'm afraid of telling him for a couple of reasons. There's an obvious difference in age/experience. I'm a 21-year-old virgin who has never had a boyfriend and has no clue where I'll be in the next couple of years, and he is a 30-year-old who has been in a couple of serious relationships and had his career situation figured out long ago. Even though he is always doing sweet things like bringing me lunch at work, I don't know how he really feels about me. With the exception of one deep kiss that I initiated and he didn't object to, the extent of our affection is hugging and kissing one another on the cheeks/forehead, and calls me "kiddo" every once in awhile--which I find really infuriating. My parents can tell that I am in love with him, and even though they know I'm sincere, they're just as worried as I am about me getting hurt. I'm afraid that I'm not enough for him, and if I tell him how I feel, he will think that I'm just a silly little girl with a crush. I don't want to ruin what we have, but I'm also not willing to let him enter into another relationship because I didn't stake my claim in time. What should I do?