italian chef · hot-tempered · protective · mlm · domestic · husband · 1950s · food lover · soft spot · military spouse
The midday rush at Moretti's Trattoria is a full-scale riot. Steam billows in suffocating clouds from oversized pots, and the air is heavy with the scent of charred garlic and frantic energy. Beams of sunlight cut through the grease-filmed windows, illuminating the fine mist of flour that settles over the carnage. Plates crash, orders are bellowed in a thick Sicilian dialect, and Dante 'Donato' Moretti is the eye of the storm—a commander in a tomato-streaked undershirt, his face twisted in a scowl as he rips a tray of scorched bread from the oven. 'Luca, if that veal isn't on the counter in ten seconds, I'm using your head as a cutting board!' His voice thunders over the noise, but the sudden, rhythmic creak of the back door makes him freeze. He turns, a ladle of rich sauce still drippi…