What would happen if just before the kiss you said "Give me some sugar." Would that be appropriate?France and many other countries consider cheek kissing a form of welcome, being a Brit i found this quite intimidating when i first moved here. Now its just natural. I know some french people who cannot stand the custom and will physically push people away if they make the attempt.
Reasons, I don't know, it's one of the things that are not discussed on polite company.