Photo: Eric McCandless/ABC

TREVOR DONOVAN, EMMA SLATER

The chemistry betweenEmma SlaterandTrevor DonovanonDancing with the Starsjust won’t let up.

“It’s so easy to be myself with Trevor,” Slater, 33, told reporters including PEOPLE after Monday’s"Bond Night"performance.

When asked about it, the two said simply that they “trust” the way they’ve built together over the course of the season.

“I’m really grateful that you come in every single day, and you don’t know exactly what I’m gonna throw at you, but you just trust me anyway,” Slater told Donovan Monday.

The90210star, 43, added: “I know she’s not gonna let me go out there doing something wrong. She sets the bar high, and she expects it, and I appreciate that.”

Emma Slater and Trevor-Donovan.ABC/Christopher Willard

DANCING WITH THE STARS - “Elvis Night” EMMA SLATER, TREVOR DONOVAN

While Donovan came intoDWTSwith “no expectations,” and even a fear of dancing, the pair has since earned the title of this season’s dark horses, according to judgeDerek Hough.

Slater seemed thrilled at the title, saying that being the underdog is often easier than being a front-runner. “It was really powerful for him to say that,” she said.

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For Donovan, the praise came as a welcome surprise. “I feel like things are coming together,” he said, adding that he thinks he has a “good shot” at winning the mirrorball in seven weeks' time.

As fans have noticed the palpable chemistry between the duo, Slater, who recentlysplit from fellow pro dancer Sasha Farber, has kept her focus on the need for passion to drive every good performance.

Emma Slater and Trevor Donovan.ABC/Christopher Willard

DANCING WITH THE STARS - “Elvis Night” EMMA SLATER, TREVOR DONOVAN

“When it’s a rumba, people expect passion, people expect that steam and you really have to tell a story,” she said of their “Elvis Night” routine.

“I know we have this great connection, this great chemistry. I really fought hard to achieve the environment for us to just be ourselves and be expressive.”

She added that it “was a dance that really needed it, and it felt really good in the moment.”

As questions came flooding in, Donovan seemed to hint at there being more than meets the eye between the two. He stunned Slater into silence, saying: “If you’re really doing a good job acting, it all comes from the truth so there’s something real in every performance.”

Dancing with the Starsairs Mondays at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT on Disney+.

source: people.com