::Prologue::

In no way, shape, or form am I a well mannered, quiet, prissy lady. I grew up with five older brothers and no mom. There wasn't any room for me to be nice. My brothers had to be kept in line and it wasn't always easy with the smallest one of them being six foot four, two hundred and sixty pounds of muscle. I grew up riding horses, hunting, mudding, fixing trucks with my brothers, and helping my dad farm. It was everything a girl could ask for. I loved the two thousand acre farm I grew up on. I loved my five big brothers. I loved my daddy. I especially loved my horses.

When other girls started passing notes to boys in class I was still memorizing horsemanship patterns. My friends started spending their weekends at parties and on dates. I spent my weekends at horse shows. I didn't see the fun in sitting around drooling over boys. I had my brothers to thank for that I guess. As I entered high school it was obvious I didn't want anything to do with my peers. In my bare feet I stood five feet elven inches tall, six feet or over with my boots on. I wasn't stick thin, no one in my family was. We were all thick and strong with broad shoulders, narrower hips, and were farmers by blood. We got up early and stayed up late doing chores. The football coach loved the Halloway brothers. He called them corn fed beef and he wasn't too far from the truth.

My brothers and I were inseparable. The six of us were all within five years of each other. Mike was the oldest. He was five years older then me and stood a staggering six feet six inches tall, two hundred and seventy-five pounds. In his senior year of high school he was offered full ride scholarships to multiple schools to play football. He took after dad with his love of farming and couldn't bear to leave his dairy cattle. He was my best friend. We tended to get in a lot of trouble when were left to our own devices and we usually convinced our brothers to join us. According to dad we were the ring leaders; I would talk them into it and Mike would make sure it went down smoothly.

Jake was next. He was barely ten months younger then Mike. They looked like twins and were as close as twins. Jake was two inches shorter then Mike, but that was the only difference. They both had the trademark Halloway blonde hair and violently green eyes. They were both blessed with golden skin and the farm work and sports kept them in good physical shape. While Mike was the quiet dairy farmer, Jake was the outgoing troublemaker. He took an offer to play football for Ohio State. I was his biggest fan and I never let him forget it. I knew it embarrassed him to a point when I'd jump on him and hug him, but I figured that's what annoying little sisters are for. Besides, he loved me too much to do much about it.

Nick and Adam were identical twins a year younger then Jake. They were as identical as two people can get in every way. Some days even I had trouble telling them apart. Tall, blonde, hazel green eyes, and crooked grins – those were my brothers. They were the same height as Jake at six foot four, but they were a little less thick around then him. After Nick graduated he stayed on the farm, taking classes at a local college branch. Adam went to Ohio State to play with Jake. I missed the two of them horribly, but I made up for it by visiting them on the weekends whenever I could.

Luke was the youngest of the boys. His green eyes were a muted mossy color and his blonde was the color of corn silk. He and Mike were always arguing over who was taller. Secretly I agreed with Luke. Luke was definitely the biggest of all the boys. He was tall and stocky and ripped. He was also the shyest of all of us. I had literally had to beat a few girls off him in the past. As overprotective as the five of them were of me, I was equally overprotective of them. Luke loved the farm. He loved to climb on the tractor and play in the dirt all day. He loved planting and harvesting. If it weren't for Mike and I keeping him motivated I doubt he would have finished high school. He graduated a year before me and made me look like a social butterfly, which was hard to do. I was actually proud of the fact that I hadn't ever been invited to, let alone attended, a party during high school.

I was the youngest of the Halloway kids and the only girl. At just under six feet tall, my brothers and father towered over me. I could take any one of them though. Like my brothers I was blonde with green eyes. My hair was a dark gold that borderlined on light brown. My eyes had a lot of gold in them and made my death glares very potent. I didn't do much make up or get my hair styled. I didn't even own a skirt, dress, or pair of heels. If I wore anything other then jeans, t-shirts, and boots there as a big problem.

Tomboy doesn't even begin to explain me. Most tomboys have a girly side. I didn't. My mom died before my first birthday and my daddy always told us he'd been fortunate enough to find his soulmate early in life and that she was irreplaceable. I didn't even really think like a girl. Boys my age stayed away from me because of my brothers and because I didn't make a habit of changing my boots after the morning milking before I went to school. Girls my age stayed away from me because I'd found out that they usually just liked to try to get to my brothers through me. Stella Andrews had tried to get to Jake through me. I broke her nose for it. It was one of my prouder moments, even if it did get me suspended for three days.

Early on my dad pounded it into our heads that family was unbreakable. As a result it was always us against the world. Any of my brothers could rough house with me or tease me, but no one else was allowed to. They could fight with each other and be horrible to each other, but no one else was allowed to. I could tease them and pick on them, but no one else was allowed to. We helped each other out. We had each others backs.

Mike and I spent many late nights fixing up the farm's vehicles and as a result I could fix just about any simple problem in a car. Adam and I were famous for randomly going fishing at midnight. Nick and I spent hours out hunting turkey. We went more for fun then anything. We just liked shooting at stuff. I was Adam's mudding partner. The only person other then him that was allowed to drive his truck was me, and that was only because I could fix it if I broke it. Luke and I spent hours cutting, raking, and baling hay. Not only could I run with the boys and keep up, sometimes they had to keep up with me and none of us would change it for the world.

AN::

So, this is the Halloway family. Love 'em or hate 'em. Its just a little different then what I normally write. I like to think my writing has has started to grow up a little. Let me know what you think. I've got about six chapters done already, but I don't think I'm going to make this much more then ten chapters long.