The lies he needs to hear: if your beau is not up to snuff in the following areas, stretch the truth. (his point of view).

* Though your man may claim that he always wants you to be 100 percent honest, there are times when he'd rather you censor your candid comments and replace them with some embellished info. Here, the half-truths (all right, even some out-and-out lies) that he needs to be told.

he's romantic

Bringing you a single rose as often as the Earth experiences a solar eclipse ]nay not qualify him as a Casanova, but when a man shows his softer side (however lame or infrequent), he thinks' he's sweeping you off your feet. So, pretend it does, for both your sakes. "Rachel and I met another couple for dinner, and they mentioned their favorite bed-and-breakfast," says Jeff *, 31. "Rachel rolled her eyes and said my idea of a romantic getaway was whisking her off to Six Flags for the day. After that, I didn't even try to be romantic."

So when he gives you a cheesy greeting card or tries to cook you a romantic meal, eat it up (literally and figuratively). That affirmation will unleash his inner beach-strolling, sunset-admiring self.

your pals love him

Though we complain that you and your friends have diarrhea of the mouth, we actually love when they gab about how wonderful we are. "Tara said the girls in her office were raving about my abs when she showed them pictures from our Florida trip," says Leon, 29. "It made me feel good to know they were telling Tara how lucky she is."

Look, men are vain. We don't want to sleep with your friends, but it doesn't hurt to know that they think we're a catch.