Grinding too hard?

my boyfriend likes to grind on me before we have sex but sometimes it hurts because hes rough about it. ive gotten tears on my inner labia before because its too rough for me. Should i right out tell him it hurts or just hint to him? I don't want to upset him or be awkward about it. Also, at one point I liked it but now its like he does it harder than before and I'm afraid of ripping or tearing because it's happened before on accident. I know he loves me and doesn't mean to hurt me.