<human>: Condense the text into a few key points

A couple months ago I met an older guy through a hobby we share. I think he's wonderful, kind, smart, funny, and I felt like we got along really well. I also felt like there was some romantic potential there, so I have plans to ask him on a date.

Because of this shared hobby (with a fairly small community in which inter-member dating is really common), I can guarantee that I will see him a few times a year for most of the rest of our lives, so I'm looking forward to a wonderful long-term and genuine friendship even if it doesn't veer into romantic territory. This guy is so great that I'm psyched to have him in my life at all, forrealz.

So how do I phrase the asking-him-on-a-date in a way that is both direct but also makes it clear that if I misread things, I'm cool with just continuing on as normal? Should that clause be part of the asking-out, or should it be used only if he says no? Does it need to be said at all?

As an example, I was planning on starting with "Hey, I had a really great time hanging out with you this weekend. Would you be interested in having dinner sometime?" but am curious if there should be some sort of addendum like "If not, I hope we can just continue on as friends!"
<bot>: Think dude is awesome & want to be BFFLs but planning on testing the romantic waters. How to ensure future long-term friendship isn't jeopardized if he says no??