Minnesota’s a kind, quiet (if sometimes chilly) place and it’s home. I was born in Montreal but have lived for 30 years in Minnesota, where the two seasons are Snow-removal and Road-repair, where the mosquito is the state bird, and where winter can be breathtakingly beautiful. “Kaje” is pronounced just like “cage” – it’s an old nickname, and my pronouns are she/her/hers. If Adam asks for Donnie's help, maybe he'll stay long enough to finally talk about the future, and the past. Of course, Adam's brother and dad don't want Donnie to stick around, but it's the busy Christmas season at the family store.

So when Donnie shows up in Tallbridge, Adam's ready to fight for more than three words of goodbye. And yet, he never found another guy he cared about the same way. Without so much as a letter back from Donnie in all this time, Adam's tried to move on. He missed that chance after the accident, fighting for his life in a hospital bed as Donnie pled guilty and disappeared into the justice system. He doesn't plan to stay.Īdam Lindberg's been waiting six years to get closure with Donnie. Just a fast look, to make sure Adam's doing all right, before Donnie starts his new life. But with the holidays approaching, he can't resist a quick trip home to Tallbridge, North Dakota, and the man he left behind. Now he's twenty-four, out of prison, and bitterly determined to start over.

At eighteen, Donnie Kagan's plans for graduation, and maybe even college, were derailed by a beer, a stoplight, and a fatal crash.

Don't Plan to Stay by Kaje Harper