The thing is that I love Hugh Armitage, I loved him in the books and I'm already in love with him in the series. But that doesn't mean that I'm not a Romelza fan above all things, because that's Poldark, Ross and Demelza and their love raising above everything and despite everything and everyone. And I don't like to hate characters, they're fictional! and they're are here to make us feels things, get angry, in love and everything in between... So I'll give it a go with Hugh, it's my first story with him and I hope you like it. Nothing is mine, everything belongs to WG and DH.

Do you still?

Isabella was born in the master bedroom of Tregothnan House in an early summer morning. Her father strolled up and down the hallway anxiously waiting to hear the cry of the child, Demelza's moanings were no longer audible. He was looking out the window when the door suddenly opened behind his back and he turned to see the midwife beckoning him to come inside the room. He had never been more anxious in his entire life, not even in that terrifying prison in France when the jailers bet on the life of the prisoners and any moment could be the last.

Secure steps guided him through the door, his mind racing looking for suitable words to recite to the new mother in this significant time, but words failed him when he saw her, radiant, glowing full with life under the white linen sheets, her cheeks a shade of pink he never witnessed in her before, her eyes wet with tears of emotion looked down to the child cradled in her arms. He felt like a stranger bursting into a bubble of love made by those two women, mother and daughter, he loved them both.

His reverie was interrupted by Demelza's voice, a whisper that he heard far away in his mind,

'Hugh... Hugh. Are you in here?' She said smiling at him, and he was brought back to the earth, standing in that room in front of the woman of his dreams. 'Do you want to know Bella?'

He didn't answer but approached slowly towards the bed and stood next to them near one of the post of the canopy, Demelza pat her hand over the edge of the mattress motioning for him to sit next to her.

'A mother's face with eyes so bright,' Hugh begun, 'you'll entertain from day till night, with selfless love she'll always be, it is a special bond share by thee.'

'Thank you Hugh', she said covering his hand with hers. She could see he was so nervous, had been like these since her contractions started the night before. He'd been quiet and unsure and distant, so different to Ross when they welcomed their children, barely able to contain himself from running up the stairs to meet his blood. But Ross wasn't here.

Demelza had left him one afternoon many months ago after a terrible argument in which things had been said from both parts that couldn't be unsaid or overlooked. Tired, she was so tired of him ignoring her, but most importantly tired of him running after Elizabeth once again and not having the decency to at least tell the truth to her face. So after he went to the mine she took the children and left. She sent Prudie to fetch Sam to help her knowing that Ross would go first to look for her in Drake's cottage, but if he looked for her or not she didn't know in those first days of confusion. She endured Sam preachings about sin and his prays for her, he practically screamed to heavens asking for her salvation, because she had now truly gone astray from the way of the Lord, she thought of coming back, she thought he would go back for her, but neither of them did. A couple of days later she received a note from Hugh.

She hadn't seen him since that day on the beach and she hadn't thought of him either. He'd written to her a couple of times since then and both times she replied that she couldn't longer see him. But Hugh Armitage didn't give up, that she learnt of him, he was like the sea, wave after wave relentlessly, he had move the sand under her feet once and she would let the tide carry her once more.

He convinced her to stay with him until things were resolved but resolution never came and she overstayed her welcome. Unlike her last birth, there were two midwifes assisting her this time, they were efficient and professionals, the doctor, Hugh had told her, was warned to be ready in case of any setback and the kids, Jeremy and Clowance were playing with the nanny Lady Boscawen had hired.

'This is Isabella', Demelza said moving the baby from one of her arms to the other so that Hugh could see her better. 'She's beautiful like her mother' he told her resting his palm in the baby's little head. She was so tiny and looked so fragile, he didn't want to even breathe when Demelza put her in his arms for fear of breaking her, Demelza still held her head when he was having her until he realized he must do that himself. He looked at her daughter and a laugh became a chuckle in his throat, tears sprung into his eyes and he saw that Demelza was crying too.

'Are you alright my dearest?' And he dared to hold the baby with only one hand and held the palm of the other against Demelza´s cheek. She nodded, but kept weeping a moment longer before taking a deep breath and kissing his palm and smile again.

'Everything will be well. You, the children and little Isabella. She's a Boscawen and nothing will be denied to her... I'll teach her how to write and read, and to play piano, you can teach her to sing!'

Demelza was laughing again. That she loved about him, his ability to make her laugh. 'I need to feed her "music teacher" if you may...' She teased him. He put the child back in her mother's arms and leaned in to give Demelza a gentle kiss in her forehead.

'Do you want me to call a nurse to come and help you?'

'No, I'll be fine. I've done this before.'

'Of course.' He said and turned around to leave the room but Demelza called him before he reached the door.

'Sweetheart... thank you.' She fully smiled to him, one of those rare smiles that lightened her entire face and made her eyes shone brighter than any star in the sky. How fool he was, how could he let her go like that... But it didn't matter to him, even when she was broken during those first weeks, when she waited for him to come and fetch her and the despair when she realized he wouldn't come he stood there beside her, a rock for her to lean into and the endless nights it took him to convinced her that she should stay with him, that he would take any crumb of love she could give him, that just being in her presence was more than he could ever dream of, that if he had her trust she would make his soul the happiest among the living.

So she had stayed, and she trusted him, and little by little she had begun to love him and now she had given him a daughter, and it was beyond anything he could ever ask for.

AN: That's no the end! I will continue of course. The reason I'm postening it is to force myself to keep writing it, I don't like to leave things uncompleted so I hope to update soon.

Tell me what did you think a always remember to bear with me my grammar mistakes, english is not my native language.