The next day

Around 9.30 am, Billy Ray was sitting in the kitchen, reading the newspaper when he was surprised by an unusual sight for this early time of the day. Miley walked in, so he put the LA Times aside and said:

"Now look at that. So, how did it go? If I judge by the look on your face, it must have been quite successful"

"To be honest, it went way better than I could hope for" Miley replied with a smile.

"What does that mean?"

„What exactly?"

„Well, did you come to a conclusion if this should turn into something more serious?"

"I'm pretty sure it already did. At least it feels serious"

"So will you tell me now who this mysterious guy is?"

"Since when are you so curious? But his name is Jerome Hansen, I don't know if you already heard about him…"

"Oh, just the usual. Former NBA player, Olympic Gold Medalist, powerful movie producer, co-founder of Google…where did you meet someone like that?"

„We did the PETA shooting together last week. And, although I really did my best to scare him off last weekend, he gave me a second chance. We don't want to rush anything now, but for the first time since the break-up with Liam, I feel ready to let another man into my life again and have a serious relationship"

"Alright, if he hasn't anything planned yet, you can invite him for dinner tonight"

"Oh come on Dad, please don't start like this now, it's still too early for that"

"No Miley, not this time. I want to meet him, and that's why you will tell him to show up. I insist"

Miley looked at her father and was surprised. It was very rare that he played the Dad card, on the other hand it showed her how important this was to him.

"Ok, I'm gonna ask him"

So she sent Hans a text to which he replied he would happily accept the invitation. Even if it made him nervous to think about meeting Miley's father. He kept telling himself that he survived such a ruthless environment like the NBA, was one of the most influential people in Hollywood and a multi-billionaire and yet…this was Billy Ray Cyrus, a country music idol, more than 25 million sold albums, good friend of the legend within, Dolly Parton (who was Miley's godmother)…and he was tall and looked like a real cowboy…but ok, he knew he had to do this sooner or later anyway.

He spent the rest of the day at home, lying at the pool and enjoyed the California sun. He only left his house once to drive to a close by liquor store and bought a good bottle of Whiskey for Miley's dad…you always want to make a good first impression.

He arrived at the Miley's house exactly at 7 pm. The gate was opened and he drove up to the front entrance where his girlfriend was already waiting at the door. She came down the stairs, hugged him and gave him a big kiss.

"Hm, I could get used to being welcomed like that"

"I would even say you have no choice but to get used to this" Miley whispered.

"Haha, sounds good to me. But let's go inside, we don't wanna keep the old man waiting"

So they went inside, and to his surprise, the first person he met was Miley's younger sister Noah, who usually lived with her mother in Nashville, but came to visit for a couple of days. Afterwards, they went into the kitchen, where Hans finally met Billy Ray Cyrus himself. He introduced himself and presented his bottle of whiskey as a gift to the head of the Cyrus family.

„If you think this can help you to make a good first impression kid, I have to tell you…that plan definitely worked" Billy Ray laughed, and at the same time made sure that Hans could calm down and feel welcome. He was still a bit nervous, but they were having a relaxed and open conversation right from the start, during which he could gather a lot of information about Billy Ray's music career, but on the other hand, the musician was also very eager to learn about Hans basketball achievements. Miley was, which was very untypical, silently listening to the conversation for most of the time, and could see that the two men seemed to get along great.

Like every good American, Billy Ray had prepared a barbecue consisting of delicious spare ribs, baked potatoes, salad, corn and bread, with an amazing home-made barbecue sauce, prepared after an old family recipe. Hans was just amazed and said:

"It's somehow sad that you weren't able to pass your cooking talents on to your daughter."

„Haha, right. You still have to tell me how you managed to get Miley into the kitchen…to cook…" he replied.

The atmosphere stayed relaxed and friendly throughout the dinner, but when the plates were empty and put aside, Billy Ray suddenly said:

"You'll have to excuse us for a few minutes Miley, but I'm gonna take your boyfriend outside for a little private talk"

"Come on dad, really?"

Hans, who had expected this anyway, quickly said:

"Hey, don't worry. He's your father, of course he wants to know what I'm up to"

Still worried, Miley turned to her father:

"Alright, but be nice, ok? I'll be in the living room"

Hans was curious as he followed the musician outside where they sat down next to the swimming pool. It didn't take long before Miley's father started the conversation:

"Alright, usually I don't interfere with Miley's life, but we've reached a point where I think it is absolutely necessary. My first question is very simple. How important is Miley to you?"

As this was a question that Hans expected to hear tonight, he already knew more or less what to say:

"Alright, I think we can have a straightforward conversation here, and I'm gonna be as honest as I can. Actually Billy, Miley isn't even my type. Until now, I was always into tall, light haired and sporty women. And yet, your daughter is the most beautiful and amazing girl I have ever met…and I'm telling you this after dating 2 Victoria Secret models. Truth be told, I have no idea how, but your daughter amazed and impressed me so much, that a simple photo shoot was enough that I couldn't get her out of my head anymore. I would say, she already means a lot to me. I actually planned to enjoy my single life for a couple more years, and all it took was a couple of hours with Miley to forget about that plan"

"I just want to make sure. I don't know how much she has told you or how much you figured out by yourself through social media and press articles, but in the last years, we've seen it all. Drugs and alcohol, wild parties, affairs, public breakdowns, the breakup with Liam, depressions, scandals and so on, and so on. Trust me, this book is thicker than the bible. And just when I thought I was beginning to completely lose her and I have to somehow drag her away from this whole entertainment business, one evening she comes back home from a date and seems completely changed. In a way, that even I regained some hope that everything could still turn out to be just fine. I just want to make clear that you somehow managed to get through to her, something that I wasn't capable of doing for the past 6-7 years, and I can already tell how much she relies on you after this short amount of time. That's why I want to make sure you really care about Miley and you're not just looking to have some fun, or want to use her to get some publicity…because that would literally kill her"

"I really appreciate your open words. And don't worry, I'm definitely not someone who seeks public attention. And yes, some things she told me, some things I managed to find out by myself. But usually, I prefer to build my own opinion instead of giving a crap about what you can find on the internet, and to me, Miley needs help. And she deserves every little bit of support she can get, because she's unique and wonderful. You just have to get through this rough surface that she put on over the last years"

"I'm really happy to hear this. There's only one thing left that worries me a bit. How will you react when it gets tough? She made a lot of enemies over the past years and now she has caught, only God knows how, one of the most wanted bachelors in the world. You're not only gonna be with a girl that's emotionally unstable and stuck in a world that mainly consists of parties, drugs and alcohol, but there will also be hostilities, from the media, from the music industry, fans, public…I'm in this business way too long to have any illusions left. The attacks will come, and you have to be aware that she can't deal with them on her own."

"I know. And again, I have this stupid habit of taking my own decisions, and I won't let my relationship be influenced by anything that's said in the media, from so-called stars or fans. And, about the hostilities, I know that they will come, probably sooner than later. But hey, you're Billy Ray Cyrus. If they want to reach her, they have to get through the both of us. And that's pretty much impossible"

"You're really serious about this, aren't you?"

"Yes sir"

After this exchange, Billy Ray got up from the table, walked to the kitchen door and shouted:

"Miley, can you come? And bring a bottle of whiskey. The good one."

It seemed like Miley was eagerly waiting for them to finish and almost ran out with a bottle of whiskey and two glasses. Billy Ray took the bottle, poured two glasses and gave one to Hans:

"Welcome to the family my boy"

"Thanks, that really means a lot to me"

The two had a toast, drank their whiskey and Miley could already tell that there was a special friendship being created between her father and her boyfriend.