Is it a big deal if my boyfriend doesn't think I'm beautiful?

I asked him 2 months ago if he thought I had a beautiful smile–because he'd posted on his Facebook page about another woman's smile being beautiful. This was obvious on my part–but he's never said anything like that to me, or ever said I'm beautiful, period. He got very defensive, and took it to mean I was comparing myself to this other woman.

Now, I'm a good-looking woman. Guys hit on me regularly, but really, the one I want to tell me I'm beautiful just doesn't do that. (He says it's not his style.)

This really bothers me, but at the same time I feel a bit silly–beauty is skin deep, yadda yadda. My take, though, is that if he's going to post in public for his family and everyone to see, I deserve a mention, too.