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I could only hope the universe appreciated the comedy.

Hudson stepped back, and I turned toward him.

“So the book’s description is impossible.”

“The part where he’s teaching her from behind works well enough. The part where they’re somehow facing each other at the same time is going to need a little artistic interpretation.”

“Fortunately, listeners can’t see us.”

“Then you’ve got an advantage over the author.”

I grinned.

We returned the broom to its cupboard, and I showed Hudson the portion of dialogue we’d need for the scene.

Once we’d established the physical movement, his delivery became much more convincing.

Instead of reading Drake’s instructions as though he were conducting an equipment inspection, Hudson gave them a warm, intimate quality that made the closeness between the fictional characters unmistakable.

At one point, I asked him to soften the end of a sentence.

“Drake’s teasing her here,” I explained. “He’s pleased she’s learning, but he’s also enjoying how close they’re standing. You don’t need to push the seduction. Just let the affection come through.”

Hudson studied the line, then read it again.

This time, his voice dropped into that wonderfully intimate register I’d come to recognize.

“That’s good,” I said, marking the take. “Very good.”

His eyes met mine.

“I’m starting to get the hang of this.”

“You really are.”

“And I’ve learned something else.”

“What’s that?”

He smiled. “Apparently, a man can make a very respectable living giving axe lessons to fictional women who don’t know which end of the tool to hold.”

I laughed.

“Don’t get too excited. You still have a considerable amount of dialogue involving enchanted sap.”

“Of course I do.”

I glanced at our remaining pages.

The next section involved a long exchange between Drake and Isadora as they approached the Heartwood, a magical place where the forest supposedly recognized destined lovers.

The dialogue moved quickly, with several interruptions and overlapping reactions that would be difficult to reproduce using completely separate recordings.

I considered the microphone setup.

There was another way to approach it, although I’d need Folio’s approval before changing our recording method.

“Hudson, how would you feel about trying a few passages together?”