Pucker up, guys! Women love it

Men do like to kiss. It's just that women really, really like kissing.

Three out of four women think the activity is more intimate than having sex, according to an Internet query of 100,000 kissers.

The interest in kissing actually is part of a newly evolving interest in romance on the part of both sexes, says Michael Christian, who wrote "The Art of Kissing" (St. Martin's, $6.95) under the pen name William Cane.

"Recent sex surveys indicate that modern lovers believe kissing is one of the most essential aspects of a relationship, yet men and women are increasingly reporting that there is not enough kissing in their love lives," he said.

For many women, kissing isn't foreplay. It's the best sexual play.

Laurence Roy Stains and Stefan Bechtal surveyed 2,102 women for their book "What Women Want: What Every Man Needs to Know." "All women said that guys — especially married guys — don't kiss them enough," the authors say.

Christian said young women are "suggesting that kissing can stand alone as a sensual pleasure that deserves to be enjoyed for

itself without going on to other sex acts."

Kissing activates primal urges, says sex therapist Marty Klein, whose Web site is www.SexEd.org "It is a very primitive need."

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