Close your eyes and make a wish — Alison Tyler has a sexy present for grown-up birthday girls and boys.

Forget the French perfume and the boxes of candy, the Hallmark cards and the gift certificates. The birthdays in this collection are observed in more carnal ways, with suitably sex presents for all. In Marilyn Jaye Lewis's "The Birthday Party," an unexpected ménage à trois in the dark proves the perfect gift. And in Kate Laurie's "Her Birthday Suit," two women give their skeptical girlfriend a stud who insists, "A promise is a promise. I can't leave you until you are absolutely satisfied."