The Walker of Her World: Training the Only One Who Stays While She Chases the Ones Who Leave

My name is Caleb. I live in Sydney, Australia, right near the coast where the air always smells like salt and expensive coffee. I’m a professional dog trainer and walker. I have a way with animals—they’re honest, loyal, and they never pretend to be something they aren't. I wish I could say the same for myself, but for the last year, I’ve been lying to my own heart for a woman named Sienna.

Sienna lives in a high-rise apartment overlooking the harbor. She has a beautiful, high-energy Australian Shepherd named Koa. Koa is a handful; he needs three hours of exercise a day or he’ll tear her designer sofa to shreds. When she first hired me, she was overwhelmed. Now, I’m the reason her life stays in one piece.

I don’t charge her. I told her Koa is a "special case" for a study I’m writing on canine behavior. It’s a total lie. I just wanted a reason to be at her door every morning and every evening. I’ve become her "emergency" contact for everything. If she’s running late, I stay and clean up the mess Koa made. If she’s out of dog food, I buy the premium organic brand with my own money and tell her the store was having a "buy one, get one" sale.

I’ve convinced myself that by being the one who cares for the thing she loves most, I’m showing her I’m the ultimate partner. I thought that if she saw how well I cared for Koa, she’d realize I’m the man who would take care of her, too.

"Caleb, you are literally my savior," she told me last Thursday, handing me Koa’s leash. She was wearing a stunning red dress and smelling like a field of jasmine. "I have this huge gallery opening tonight. I’ll be out really late. Could you... you know?"

"I’ll take him to the beach for a long run, Sienna. Don’t worry about a thing," I said, forcing a smile.

"You're amazing! I don't know how I'd ever date anyone if I didn't have you to watch him. Most guys find him 'too much work,' but you make it look so easy!"

I spent six hours with Koa. I drove him out to a dog-friendly beach, threw the ball until my shoulder ached, and then took him back to my place to wash the sand out of his fur. I spent my Friday night sitting on my floor, sharing my steak with a dog that isn't mine, while the woman I love was being charmed by a guy named Harrison.

Harrison is a "tech entrepreneur" who thinks dogs belong in backyards, not apartments. He doesn't like Koa. He thinks Koa is "needy."

I brought Koa back to her apartment around midnight. I have a key—a privilege I treasure, even though it’s only for "work." I sat in the dark living room for a while, just waiting to make sure she got home safe. When I heard the elevator, I stood up.

The door opened, and Sienna walked in, laughing. Harrison was right behind her, his hand on her waist.

"Oh! Caleb, you’re still here?" she asked, her voice a little buzzed from the wine.

"Just finished drying him off," I said, feeling like an intruder in a space I’d spent all night preparing for her.

"Great, great," Harrison said, not even looking at me. "Hey, babe, can you put the dog in the other room? He’s getting hair on my trousers."

Sienna didn't argue. She whistled for Koa, and the dog—the one I’d just spent six hours bonding with—ran to her and then followed her into the bedroom. I stood in the hallway holding a wet towel and a bag of treats I’d bought.

"Thanks, mate," Harrison said, leaning against the doorframe. "Sienna says you do this for free. That’s a hell of a hobby you’ve got there. You should probably get a life of your own, though, yeah?"

He shut the door. I heard the lock click.

I walked down to my old van, my clothes covered in fur and my shoes damp from the ocean. I checked my phone. I had a text from my brother asking if I wanted to go camping this weekend. I’d already told him no, because Sienna mentioned she might need someone to watch Koa while she and Harrison go for a "romantic weekend" in the Blue Mountains.

I’m sitting in my van now, looking up at her window. The lights just went out. I’m thirty years old, I’m one of the best trainers in the city, and I’m using all my skills to make sure a dog stays quiet so another man can be with the woman I love. I’m the man who does the work so she can have the fun. I’m the "special case" trainer, but the only one I’ve successfully trained is myself—to be happy with the scraps of her time while I give her the best of mine.