Lightly brush your lips over the other person's. Use feather-light pressure at first, so that your lips are just barely grazing over your partner's. This builds more anticipation and excitement than diving straight into a full-on French kiss. This also signals to your partner that you may be wanting more without being too forward about it.

• Keep your movements slow. A lot of quick, light kisses don't have the same level of sexiness as a barely-restrained build in tension. Act like you have all the time in the world—the kiss will speed up soon enough.

Test the waters. Once you've built a solid foundation for a French kiss with some tongueless kissing, you can give the other person some subtle hints that you're ready to take it up a notch. In general, if it's your first time kissing the person, you should be a bit cautious before initiating a French kiss, because this may come off as too much too soon. But beyond that, here are some things to keep in mind as you test the waters to signal that you're ready to kiss with your tongue:

• Open your mouth more widely. Offering unrestricted access invites the other person to make the first tentative tongue contact.
• Lock lips, so that the other person's lower lip is between your two lips. Then, lightly sweep the tip of your tongue over the lower lip. Do one smooth, swift motion so that the contact lasts for less than a second. If he or she is interested, they'll reciprocate.
• Know when to pull back. If you've tried both of the above techniques and your partner hasn't responded, simply leave it alone until next time and focus on regular kissing. Avoid making a big deal of it, or guilting him or her.

Explore with your tongue. If the other person seems interested, go ahead and start French kissing for real. Remember to keep your tongue in motion and your touches light. First, just slowly slide your tongue into your partner's mouth. You can either begin by placing it above or below your partner's tongue, or even move it around the tongue a bit if you're feeling more bold. Just make sure your partner's tongue is reciprocating your actions so you're not just kissing a limp tongue, or the romance will dissipate pretty quick. Here are some things to keep in mind as you explore the French kiss:

• Stay playful. "Tag" the other person's tongue lightly and retreat back, inviting him or her to make the next move.
• Tongues are loaded with nerve endings, and the mere act of touching your partner's tongue with your own will be very pleasant.
• Don't go too deep — jamming your tongue down the other person's throat is a big turn-off. Stay shallow and light at first. See how far your partner wants to go, and follow suit.

Breathe. If you’re kissing for an extended period, it’s easy to forget to breathe. Believe it or not, gasping and turning blue isn't very romantic. You may think that a truly passionate kiss involves many minutes of non-stop kisses, but if you really want to up the romance factor, then you have to stay alert and conscious. Once you fall into a rhythm, you should be able to find a suitable pattern for breathing without interrupting the flow of your kisses. Here's what you need to know:

• Take small breaths through your nose as you kiss.
• Don't be afraid to take a break. If you do it right, it can still be an intimate and sexy moment. Pull back slightly so that your foreheads are still touching, make eye contact, and smile.
• As you and your partner grow comfortable with the kiss, you can try breathing through your mouth a little: sharing breaths as well can be romantic (but not everybody likes it).