Chapter 2

John Michael Matheson was born in November 8, 1955 to Mike and Muriel Matheson of Burnaby, British Columbia. When he graduated from High School, he was a full fledged “geek”, an A student with an interest in almost anything in the physical sciences. He was never considered an athlete but a few who knew him were aware he was an avid skier with a penchant for reckless speed. He was also a better-than-average middle distance runner. His disguises were the “Clark Kent” horn-rimmed glasses he was forced to wear, and his ever-present pocket calculator. No self respecting girl would be caught dead with the class nerd.

It came as no surprise to his parents that he would choose the Sciences and spend five hard-working years at the University of British Columbia earning a B.Sc. in Electrical Engineering. It was a perceptive career choice. The personal and small network computer age was in its infancy in the late ‘70’s and “Jack” as most people now called him, was in on the ground floor. Within five years, he had started his own business as a consultant on application and implementation. He couldn’t believe how lucrative the field was and how many charlatans were posing as “experts.” His credibility and fees rose exponentially, and by the mid 1990’s he was very wealthy and very secure.

Along the way, he had lost the glasses in favor of contacts and ultimately, laser surgery. The pocket calculator became an Organizer, then a Palm Pilot and finally, a Blackberry. The middle distance runner became a part of the jogging fad that swept North America and his wealth afforded him a very nice cabin at Whistler Ski Resort to satisfy his need for speed. He had also acquired a wife and a son.

Jack met Shannon Dunne on Grouse Mountain as they stood in line waiting for their turn on the chairlift. She was wearing a light blue ski parka and matching insulated pants, topped off with a whimsical toque decorated with cartoon characters. She was a pure blonde with pale blue eyes and a lovely sprinkling of freckles on her upper cheeks. Her face was flushed red from the raw, damp day, but she was smiling and obviously enjoying herself. She was also on her own.

“Hi ... I guess we’ll be sharing a chair,” Jack began tentatively.

“Really?” she said turning to look at him. “How do you know?”

“Uh ... I counted heads and it figures we will be paired.”

“Oh ... that’s nice,” she said absently.

“My name’s Jack ... Jack Matheson,” he said, holding out his hand.

She looked at it for a moment and then at him before taking it in her gloved hand.

“Shannon Dunne,” she replied, squinting at him in the bright glare of a milky sun.

That was about the entire repertoire Jack possessed when talking to females, particularly attractive blonde females.

They waited in silence until their turn came and having lined themselves up, slipped onto the chair and felt the lift accelerate as they swung up and away toward the top.

“You come here often?” Jack tried again.

“Every weekend. I’ve got a season’s pass,” she replied.

“Lucky you. I get up here when I have a break and I’m not cramming. I’d love to do this every weekend.”

“What school?” she asked.

“UBC ... Engineering.”

“Oh ... those guys,” she said with a note of distain.

“How about you?” he asked.

“UBC Arts.”

“Oh ... those guys,” he laughed.

She looked at him with the look of one who had been insulted, and then it softened, and the next thing Jack knew, he was in love. The smile did him in. By the time they’d reached the top, they’d agreed to ski together and by noon, they were having lunch together. He was trying to learn everything there was to know about her. As she spent more time with him, Shannon became less and less wary and more and more open with him. They agreed to meet in the campus library foyer at noon on Monday. Jack was ecstatic with finding a potential girlfriend.

Jack would learn that Shannon was shy and that her behavior and openness with him Saturday on the mountain was uncharacteristic. She was from well-to-do parents while Jack’s family was solid middle-class. She had no particular aim in life yet, but she did want to experience the University environment, and was encouraged to do so by her parents. She was an only child while Jack had an older sister, Marilyn, who had married and moved to Montreal the previous year. He was an uncle twice now as she had just given birth to twin boys.

Both Shannon and Jack were virgins and remained so for almost all of their University time. That changed when Jack approached the end of his final year and Shannon still had a year to go. They had been inseparable for almost a year and a half and while they indulged in heavy petting and the usual fondling, they had not bridged that final gap. It worried Shannon that Jack would graduate and she would still be in school. She feared losing him to some nameless corporation that would send him somewhere a long way away. He might even meet someone else. She was convinced now she was in love with the tall, and now handsome young man.

She had put a lot of effort into getting rid of the “nerd” image that Jack had carried. She convinced him to try contacts, and after a couple of false starts, he was happy with the change. She began to pick out his wardrobe and soon the checked shirts and baggy pants had been replaced by more “hip” garments favored by the campus men. She convinced him to carry his calculator and pens in his briefcase and even splurged to buy him a new pair of the latest Nike sneakers to wear on campus. It was her birthday gift to him, and he was stunned at her generosity knowing how much they cost. The final touch was the haircut or hair styling as she called it. His transformation was now complete.

For his own part, Jack had known for some time that he was in love with Shannon. She was exactly what he wanted and needed. She had seen past his superficial appearance and found the real Jack Matheson. She was shy and almost fragile in appearance and yet he realized that like a willow tree, she would bend but not break. She had an inner strength that he both admired and envied.

Each had taken the other to meet the parents and happily, they all got along very well. Despite the difference in social status, the four parents obviously approved of their offspring’s choice of companion and they had little doubt this would be a permanent match. Frank Dunne was easily manipulated by his daughter, and he was often “lending” her money which she spent on her “Jack Matheson Improvement Project.”

Mike Matheson was immensely proud of Jack and his accomplishments. He was certain to be a success, and it only remained to be seen which field of endeavor he chose. His choice of Shannon as his girlfriend was impeccable in Mike and Muriel’s opinion. She was a polite and lovely young lady with a quiet charm that any prospective parent-in-law would admire. They particularly liked the transformation she had wrought on Jack as he matured into a fine-looking young man.

Shannon’s decision to have Jack take her virginity was not a spur of the moment decision. She had thought about it for months and there had been a couple of false starts that Jack never knew about. Finally, nearing the end of Jack’s final year, she decided she would go through with it. She had prepared herself both physically and mentally. She was on birth control pills and had been for some eight months. She wanted to experience Jack in the most natural way and it only remained to find the proper location. The opportunity came when her parents went to Boston for a conference, and then a short vacation on Cape Cod. They would be gone two weeks and the house was all hers.

She couldn’t decide whether to tell Jack what she had in mind, or just let it happen. She invited him to come home with her on the Friday her parents left, and she would make dinner for them. Jack was happy to accept. He phoned his mother to let her know of his plans, and then drove Shannon to her home that afternoon.

They had eaten and Jack had opened a beer as they sat on the patio in the warm spring evening. Shannon was nursing a Seven-up and was nervously anticipating the coming evening. She had no idea of how to initiate the process, but she knew she would be making love to what she hoped would be her future husband sometime that night. Jack also seemed to be in some discomfort. It was because he too realized that this evening would be an important one for them.