Slippery character getting into free love (3)
I believe the answer is:
eel
'slippery character' is the definition.
(I've seen this before)
'into free love' is the wordplay.
'into' indicates the answer is hidden within the clue.
'EEL' is hidden within 'free love'.
'getting' acts as a link.
(Other definitions for eel that I've seen before include "Elongated fish" , "User of electric organ" , "Wriggly fish" , "Proverbially slippery fish" , "Slithery fish" .)