Officer hides current reading material
I believe the answer is:
lit
'reading material' is the definition.
(short for literature)
'officer hides current' is the wordplay.
'officer' becomes 'lt' (abbreviation for lieutenant).
'hides' is an insertion indicator.
'current' becomes 'I' (symbol for electric current).
'lt' placed around 'i' is 'LIT'.
(Other definitions for lit that I've seen before include "Settled" , "landed here" , "Set fire to" , "Burning" , "Ignited, say cigarette" .)