Training Leland [Hard Hits 12] (Siren Publishing Classic ManLove)
Hard Hits 12
Training Leland
Lt. Wittfield “Witt” Falken has just rescued a former classmate who bullied him for being gay. When Witt tries to pull away, he quickly discovers that Leland only wants to hold on. Unable to deny the intense attraction he has for Leland, he stays.
Det. Leland Mathews was a jerk to Witt in high school. At the time, he couldn’t admit the feelings he had for Witt. Now that life has thrown them back together, Leland has no plans on letting go of Witt anytime soon. Will Witt forgive him?
Witt is a Dom who is need of a sub. When Leland begs for forgiveness, Witt takes a chance on the man who made his life hell. Unable to ignore the sexual chemistry heating up between them, Witt wants to take control of Leland. Will Leland say yes and become his sub?
Genre: Alternative (M/M or F/F), BDSM, Contemporary
Length: 21,754 words
TRAINING LELAND
Hard Hits 12
Tatum Throne
EROTIC ROMANCE
MANLOVE
Siren Publishing, Inc.
www.SirenPublishing.com
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A SIREN PUBLISHING BOOK
IMPRINT: Erotic Romance ManLove
TRAINING LELAND
Copyright © 2014 by Tatum Throne
E-book ISBN: 978-1-63258-714-5
First E-book Publication: December 2014
Cover design by Harris Channing
All art and logo copyright © 2014 by Siren Publishing, Inc.
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED: This literary work may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, including electronic or photographic reproduction, in whole or in part, without express written permission.
All characters and events in this book are fictitious. Any resemblance to actual persons living or dead is strictly coincidental.
PUBLISHER
Siren Publishing, Inc.
www.SirenPublishing.com
Letter to Readers
Dear Readers,
If you have purchased this copy of Training Leland by Tatum Throne from BookStrand.com or its official distributors, thank you. Also, thank you for not sharing your copy of this book.
Regarding E-book Piracy
This book is copyrighted intellectual property. No other individual or group has resale rights, auction rights, membership rights, sharing rights, or any kind of rights to sell or to give away a copy of this book.
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This is Tatum Throne’s livelihood. It’s fair and simple. Please respect Tatum Throne’s right to earn a living from her work.
Amanda Hilton, Publisher
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DEDICATION
For the Throne boys with all my love.
Table of Contents
Title Page
Copyright Page
Dedication
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
About the Author
TRAINING LELAND
Hard Hits 12
TATUM THRONE
Copyright © 2014
Chapter One
Detective Leland Mathews stared at his nephew’s teacher as though she’d grown two heads. His pager buzzed twice. He was late for getting to a crime scene. The checklist in front of him was supposed to be a formal assessment of his nephew. The checklist was a generic form that listed the ways the teacher was going to place his nephew away from doors, windows, and other children. Where was she going to put him? In another room by himself?
The checkmark that stung the most was the remedial grouping. There was nothing remedial about a kid who had a photographic memory. This woman was an idiot but Leland couldn’t tell her that to her face. This checklist was a complete and utter fucking joke. After a few weeks of school, she was supposed to know his nephew that well. After letting her go on for a while, Leland had enough.
“I’m not signing this. It’s not an accurate assessment of my nephew’s strengths,” Leland said.
“Be that as it may, we just want what’s best for Isaac.”
Leland stood up. He had to get to work. “By giving him a crutch. Not going to happen. He stays in class with the other students. He’s a smart kid. He’s not being pulled out for extended test taking time.”
“He needs the help with his reading.”
“He needs an education. That’s what my sister is paying you for. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m late for work.”
“You’re making a mistake.”
Leland glared at the second grade teacher. She was an idiot. “Do your job and teach my nephew. If you want me to sign anything, you need to have a plan that reflects Isaac strengths and not this generic form.”
Outside in the hallway, Isaac sat on a chair swinging his legs and reading a book about Minecraft. He looked up. His gold-rimmed glasses gave the blond-headed boy a nerdy look. “Hey, buddy. Ready?”
“When’s my mom coming?”
His sister Rose had to work late at the diner. She was just coming down the hall. “Here she is now. Perfect timing.”
“Am I in trouble?” Isaac asked.
“No, buddy. Your teacher wants to give you some extra reading.”
Isaac smiled. “Oh, okay.”
“Thanks, Leland,” Rose said.
“You’re welcome.”
They headed out to the parking lot where they could speak privately. They buckled Isaac into the backseat of Rose’s car. She shut the door as she worried her lip. “How’d it go?” Rose asked.
“As expected. She’s an idiot.”
Rose shook her head. “I don’t understand why she’s singling Isaac out.”
“I don’t know either but you don’t need to take any of her advice. You know Isaac the best. Not her. I think the extra reading would help him but not being pulled out from class so much.”
“I know. He just gets frustrated with the hard words.”
“Completely normal,” Leland said.
“Thanks again for filling in for me.”
“No problem.” Leland’s pager buzzed again. “I better get going.”
> “Okay. Be safe.”
Leland hurried across town, shutting down the side of his brain that wanted to tell his nephew’s teacher where to shove her checklist. It was bad enough Rose’s ex wasn’t involved and there for Isaac the way he should be. Before he knew it, Leland was pulling up on the crime scene. It was a shit storm of police cars blocking the bridge.
Wind whipped him in the face as he got out of his Land Rover. He headed over to TJ and Adam, who were standing near the rail. “What’ve we got?”
“Jumper.”
“Suicide?”
“Not sure. Witnesses said she got out of the car and just rushed the edge of the bridge. They saw her go over but no one saw her in the water,” TJ said.
“How long have you been on scene?” Leland asked.
“Ten minutes tops. Water rescue was already on scene from a boating accident upriver.”
Down below, water rescue was searching the water for the jumper. Where was she? Still, no one saw the jumper land in the water. They all saw her go over. That thought had Leland going to the edge of the bridge to lean over it. He didn’t see anyone. He reached for TJ’s flashlight and flicked it on, searching the underside of the bridge. Water rescue trained their lights onto the underbelly of the bridge, too. There. A woman clung to a beam deep within the dark shadows of the rusty steel. She looked as though she’d climbed out and gotten stuck. TJ and Adam came to his side.
“She’s clinging to a beam. I’m going to make contact,” Leland said.
“Fuck. How did we miss her?” TJ said.
“Everyone was looking in the water,” Adam said.
Water rescue moved their lights just enough to cast the woman in complete darkness again. It was easy to see how they missed her there. “Easy. She’s just out of sight with the light.”
Leland started to climb over the side of the bridge when TJ grabbed his arm, stopping him.
“Wait. It’s not safe. We need to rope you in,” TJ said.
Leland knew there was little time. “I’m good. I’ll be careful.”
TJ grabbed him as he started to swing his leg over the edge of the bridge again. “I’m not going to plan your funeral because you didn’t want to take the time to be safe.”
“Fine. Hurry!”
TJ rushed off to his car, pulling out some rescue equipment. The man was always prepared for anything. Leland, TJ, and Adam put on the full-body climbing harnesses. TJ worked the rope around the edge of the rail, backing it up by tying it off on the beam. When the climbing rope was secure, Leland clipped into the rope, getting ready to repel over the side. Adrenaline rushed through his blood. He was a junky for the high that came with extreme sports. He’d tried them all. Sky diving was by far his favorite. He didn’t care for rock climbing anymore but he still had the skills.
Leland climbed over the side of the rail, holding on tight as a gust of wind nearly took him off the side of the bridge. The woman looked up at him with glassy eyes. She looked like she was either high on something or out of her mind. Leland was going with a mental breakdown of some kind. Most didn’t do this sort of thing unless something drove them to go over the side of the bridge. Leland gave her a reassuring smile that he hoped wouldn’t frighten her into jumping.
“Hi there. Need some help?”
She bit her lip. Her eyes were wide. The wind made her blonde hair whip around her head. Her hands gripped the rusty steel bridge. Behind her, TJ was getting into place just in case they had to make a quick save. There was a good chance that they would have to. Leland held onto the steel above his head as his feet made their way across the six-inch beam. Despite having the harness and climbing rope locked in, he still felt a bit unsteady. His heart hammered as adrenaline rushed through his veins.
“I’m just going to come a little bit closer so that we can talk better. Is that okay with you?”
Her wide eyes looked down at the raging waters of the Ohio River. Yeah, it was a really long way down. Two hundred feet if he remembered correctly from the number of times some of his coworkers had taken a nosedive off this bridge. Leland eased his big frame along the steel beam, which wasn’t easy at his height of six feet. When he got within several inches, she moaned and tried to ease away.
“It’s okay. No one is going to hurt you. I promise you that.”
Thunder rumbled and rain started to fall, making the steel beam slippery. The rain was cold and biting on Leland’s skin. It wouldn’t be long before winter was full of cold hard rage and battering down on Cincinnati.
“Hey, I can help you.”
The woman started to blink rapidly as though she were suddenly waking up from a fog-induced nightmare. She started to cry. “Where am I? Oh, God! Not again!”
Leland reached out, grabbing the woman before she fell. His body swung away from the steel beam as the momentum of the save sent his body flying. With his arms locked around the woman’s waist, he swung back toward the steel beam where TJ reached out, grabbing hold of the rope. He held them in close to his body where Adam could get the rescue harness around the woman’s waist. She was crying hysterically into Leland’s shoulder. Once the harness was secure, TJ eased the woman away.
“We’re going to take you up now,” Leland said.
She nodded, wiping away her tears as she was lifted above the side of the bridge and taken away to safety. TJ followed her with Adam leaning his hand over to help him over the side of the rail. Everything was getting really slippery. Despite their industrial sole, Leland could feel his work boots struggling to grip. Even his hands were starting to lose their hold.
He climbed the steel connector but his foot slipped, followed by his hand, making his body swing out like a barn door opening. The rope around his body snapped taut but the harness around his waist unraveled like a ribbon from a spool. He looked up just in time to see TJ and Adam’s faces as they realized he was in trouble.
“Hold on!” TJ screamed. “I got you!”
As the harness went flying over his head, so did the rope. Leland swung his body upward, trying to catch that rope but it was no use. He swung out again. This time he couldn’t hang on. This time he was falling fast to the river below. This time when he hit the water, sinking fast, he was certain he wouldn’t be surfacing any time soon. Leland reached for the equipment locked down tight on his body. He struggled to work it off before he drowned. Stars formed rapidly behind his eyes as he worked hard to kick toward the surface. It was too late.
* * * *
Lt. Wittfield Falken watched in horror as the officer rescuing the jumper lost his footing and fell from the bridge. He sped the boat toward the spot the officer fell into the water and started emergency rescue procedures. The three guys with him were already in the water without being given an order by the time he stopped the boat. They were underwater for a long time before all three surfaced with the cop. The officer wasn’t breathing and was completely knocked out.
Witt pulled him up on the boat and started CPR. As he pumped his chest, the boat was flying toward the shore. Witt leaned down, blowing air into his lungs. Water ejected from his mouth, making him cough. Recognition registered late on Witt’s adrenaline-pumped mind. He’d just saved the one man who’d made his high school years a living hell.
Leland’s eyes fluttered open and panic went wildly through them.
“You’re okay. You’re going to be okay.”
He coughed. “The girl?”
“She’s safe.”
Leland clung to Witt’s hands as they docked. SWAT doc Woods was there waiting to take the officer to the ambulance. Witt tried to get his hand free from Leland but he gripped it tighter as though he didn’t want him to let go. Woods’s eyes went wide when he saw what was going on.
“Looks like you’re coming with us,” Woods said.
“Okay.”
He glanced back at his team, who had it all under control. Witt rushed with the crew, taking Leland to the waiting ambulance. Despite being awake a moment before, he was in and out as they l
oaded him inside. Witt looked down at Leland as he sat inside the ambulance. His lips were grayish blue, and his dark black hair was plastered to his pale face.
Despite all the shit he went through in high school, Witt wanted him to live. The EMTs went to work cutting off his clothes and started running wires and tubes. It was hard to watch Leland barely cling to life. They put an oxygen mask over his face. Dr. Woods looked over at Witt as he listened to Leland’s lungs and breathing. Up front, one of the EMTs was calling the hospital to let them know they were on their way.
“Do you know Detective Mathews?” Woods asked.
Witt shook his head no. “I don’t personally know him but we went to high school together.”
“That it explains why he won’t let go of you. He recognized you.”
Right then Witt wasn’t so sure Leland had remembered him or even recalled the perfect hell he’d made his life. Witt didn’t leave Leland’s side as they took him into the emergency room. It wasn’t until the emergency room doctor pushed him out of the room that Witt went to the waiting area. It wasn’t long before the waiting area was filled with his brothers in blue from District Four.
As the hours bled together, LEOs from District Four came to visit the officer. Witt wasn’t sure why he was hanging around. He didn’t know anyone. He blended into the background with no one taking notice of him. It was the way he wanted it. He just wanted to hear how Leland was doing before he left for the night.
The two guys from the top of the bridge came over to stand in front of Witt, forcing him out of his thoughts.
“I’m TJ. This is Adam. We wanted to thank you for what you did for Leland.”