On screen in The Real Housewives of New Jersey, we’ve watched Melissa Gorga’s hot and passionate relationship with her husband Joe grow season after season.

But in her new book, Love Italian Style: The Secrets Of My Hot And Happy Marriage, Melissa opens up about what really makes her marriage tick and offers advice on how to be the perfect housewife.

Breaking Celebrity News got the chance to catch up with Melissa and have a chat about her new book.

Breaking Celebrity News: On RHONJ, you said you didn’t want to include stuff about your dad’s infidelities in your book. What changed your mind?

Gorga: What I saw growing up has a lot to do with how I run my marriage now. He had been with my mother since he was 18 and when he wanted to go out and party, he did it, but he didn’t go with my mother. So I’ve learned that the couple that plays together, stays together. It’s important that when you want to go out and have a good time, you do it together. You don’t need to do it separate.

Breaking Celebrity News: How did Joe respond to you telling him about your father?

Gorga: He completely understood. I know that he respects me as a wife and mother and it’s very important to me to have a strong and healthy marriage. I think it helps him understand why.

Breaking Celebrity News: You talk about treating Joe like a king. What does that mean?

Gorga: When you treat your husband like the king, you in return will be his queen. What I mean by that is, when you make him feel like he’s the man of the house and when you make him feel like he’s important… he’s going to treat you like the woman and it works both ways and then everyone’s happy. It’s not necessarily that you have to cook him dinner every night, but do something to make him feel appreciated for going out all day and let him feel like the man. He needs to be the man.

Breaking Celebrity News: When you guys first got married, you were about to accept a job to be a teacher, but then Joe asked you to come work with him. Do you ever regret not taking that teaching job?

Gorga: No. I always wanted to do that, but I worked with him and we bettered the business of which is now our family business. It went from outdoor construction to we own buildings now. We worked really hard for it together and we built it together. So no, I have no regrets. I wanted to be a mommy anyway. I wanted to raise my children, so it worked out.

Breaking Celebrity News: What was the toughest obstacle you had to face in the early years of your marriage?

Gorga: The power struggle. It was very hard when you go from an independent girl who paid for everything on her own. When you go from being a very independent person to you have this husband who is kind of the head of the house, it was hard for me at first.

Breaking Celebrity News: At what point did you guys learn to balance out your relationship?