Author's Note: In response to a tumblr prompt asking for Irina visiting Jack after The Flood (aka Rambaldi zombies in Russia) but before Maternal Instinct. I had a lot of different ideas for this, but I think I came up with something that would be fun for everyone involved. Enjoy and please review :)

Guess What?

Jack went around his hotel room, checking for bugs and bombs, as usual. It was all he could do to focus. Today had been beyond draining. Between his discussion with Vaughn, comforting Sydney, and making sure everything was in order for Vaughn's transportation and rehabilitation, he had really earned a few hours of rest. He was starting to believe that he was getting a bit old for this.

And now he was going to be a grandfather. That he was still a bit young for. His daughter was going to have a child. The thought consumed him as he divested himself of his clothes to get into bed.

A light tap came at the window. Jack pulled his pants back on and grabbed his gun to investigate. There in the moonlight, outside his sixth storey window, was a very familiar face. He exhaled and relaxed, putting the safety back on the gun before he opened the window.

"You know, that's not the proper use of a fire escape," he quipped.

She scoffed at him as she climbed in.

"You look much better than the last time I saw you," he noted.

"The last time you saw me, I had been tortured in a hole for months before being rescued by my daughters and sent to fight zombies created by my sister!"

"I know. I was there."

"Oh shut up," she pouted. With a seductive smirk, she changed tactics and purred, "You should greet me without a shirt more often."

Jack rolled his eyes. "What are you doing here, Irina?"

"I just thought I'd say hello. I also thought you might like to talk after the day you've had."

"How do you know what kind of day I've had?" he asked, not actually caring about the answer. He sat on the bed and ran a hand through his hair.

Irina came to sit beside him. "I keep tabs on my daughter, Jack. And I've always known about Bill Vaughn. Why do you think I was tasked to eliminate him? I knew it would come to something like this eventually."

"I don't want to talk about that."

"Oh I see. You don't want to talk at all." She stood up and moved to straddle his lap, wiggling on top of him and tangling her fingers in his curly hair.

Jack gave a rare genuine smile. "The sliver lining is revealed."

"What silver lining?" she asked, her words muffled into his neck.

He chuckled, pulling her close to him. "I always knew I'd find something good in letting an international criminal go free. And this is it."

She paused her ministrations and looked at him. "You mean this isn't what you had in mind all along? Jack, sweetheart, how could we have our time together if I was rotting away in some prison?"

"I realize that now, honey. But you say that as if that's the only thing you're good for."

"For you, what else is there for me to do?"

Jack's brow furrowed angrily and he pulled her off him to speak to her properly. "You are not my whore, Irina. You've saved my life on countless occasions, you're the partner I'd choose any day of the week, and you're my wife."

She leaned back on the bed and gazed at his half-naked form standing over her. "I take it that means you love me?"

That sparkle in her eyes told Jack that she had been fishing for that. Obviously she knew she was more than a good time in bed, although that was one of the greatest of her many skills. His expression softened. "Of course I do."

Jack climbed onto the bed to rest inches above her. Irina raked her fingers over his bare chest, and he lowered himself slowly to kiss her, which they engaged in for quite some time. His kisses were soft and languid, not full of his usual strength and passion. Irina could tell he was tired. She wouldn't exhaust him any more tonight. This would be enough for now. They could fall asleep in each other's arms, just like they always did when they were together.

Irina broke away first, knowing that Jack would never admit his fatigue if it was detrimental to their pleasure. Sure enough, she lay there, breathing heavily, and Jack was busy sucking on her neck. Stifling a giggle, she commented, "You know, sweetheart, when you were singing my praises earlier, you neglected to mention that I'm the mother of your daughter."

Jack rolled off of his wife, trying desperately to keep from laughing.

"What?!" Irina asked, annoyed at his reaction.

"Speaking of Sydney, do you know what she and Vaughn were discussing just before…"

"His death? No, what?"

"Names."

"Names?" she asked obtusely.

He smirked. "Guess what?"

Now she was annoyed. "What?!"

"Sydney is pregnant."

Irina was dumbstruck. She stared at him, wide-eyed. The vein in her temple twitched. Jack just sat there and smiled at her, waiting for a reaction.

She whispered, "We're going to be…"

"Grandparents," Jack finished.

"No."

"I don't think we have a choice, honey."

Irina darted across the bed and began smacking Jack wherever she could reach. "I blame you for this! You were supposed to teach her about contraception!"

Jack blocked her attack easily, seeing as she wasn't actually fighting him. He laughed good-naturedly. "Sydney is thirty-one years old and engaged to the father. I think she's been doing fine!"

"I still blame you! I'm too young to be a grandmother!" she shrieked.

He finally pinned her arms to her sides and kissed her mouth, effectively shutting her up. "I agree. You're far too young. But it's your own fault for getting pregnant when you were only twenty-five."

She narrowed her eyes at him. "I believe the fault for that one lies equally between us."

"Fair point. But there's no point complaining about any of this. Sydney is going to be a mother. And we both have to support her the best we can, especially in light of recent events."

Irina sat back and frowned slightly. "You'll take care of her?"

"Haven't I always?"

"That's not what I mean. You'll really take care of her this time? You?"

"That's my plan."

Irina nodded, satisfied with that answer. She couldn't take care of her daughter as she wanted or as Sydney deserved, but this time she could make sure that Jack made up for her absence. She remained quiet for a while, lost in thought. After a moment, a smile spread over her lips. "What do you think the odds are that she'll name the baby after me?"

Jack laughed, "Less than zero. Sydney might love you, but it's also Vaughn's baby."

"Yes, naming a child after the person who murdered his grandfather might be inappropriate."

"Just slightly, yes," Jack agreed.

Irina sat up to remove her shoes, socks and pants. "Let's go to bed, shall we?"

Jack removed his pants again as well. "Well that's what I was doing before you showed up."

"Oh don't pretend you aren't glad to see me," she teased.

He picked her up and pulled her under the covers with him. She giggled and he smiled lovingly. "I'm always glad to see you. Even when you have a gun pointed at me, I can't help but think to myself, 'god she's pretty.'"

Irina laughed heartily. "Even when I do point a gun at you, we usually end up in bed together anyway!"

"Yes, that fact isn't lost on me."

They laughed together and happily fell asleep in each other's arms.

The End