River

2: but its better if you do

The palm trees swayed in the wind as the aston martin zoomed down the empty interstate.

It was quiet for this time of night but that was always a good thing when it came to events like this, it meant all the important people were already where they needed to be and those uninvited were staying out of trouble.

However, thinking about being at the party tonight brought me anxiety.

I had been to plenty office parties in the past and I knew Ishmael threw the most unforgettable ones, but I was nervous nevertheless.

I toyed with the gold chain around my neck as Roman drove us towards Ishmael's place on Solana Beach. After hearing Aven on the phone worrying about there being a potentially unwanted guest at the party, I grew concerned for what that would mean if Roman and I were to encounter this person.

Throughout the entire flight I found myself zoning out of the conversations Roman was having with Liana and I. While they were busy thinking of ways to get even more drunk than they already were, I was contemplating asking them to turn back.

I didn't want to ruin Roman's celebration. He had a speech planned to share with Ishmael at the party and I honestly didn't want to take this important event away from him and make it all about me.

We had picked her up before heading towards the airport because she missed her flight earlier today with Aven.

She told us she slept in by accident, but judging from the state her apartment was in when I went to get her, it looked like she had a heck of a pre-game of her own. There were bottles of Don Julio, cigarette buds, and the smell of cleaning supplies lingering all throughout her living room.

A weird combination but thats how you could describe Liana. She was a hot mess since the moment we met. I looked out the passenger seat window to a lane of beautiful, tall palm trees across the side of the road. San Diego was like God's own country.

The water was the most blue I had ever seen.

Although it was well into the night time, it looked breath taking and I could only imagine how serene the panoramic views would look like in the morning. The air felt crisp under my hands as I rolled down the windows and stuck my head out the window, basking in the warm feeling.

I noticed we were pulling up to a massive white estate with brown European French doors along the front and what I could see also the sides. The house looked so welcoming and felt like a summer getaway in Ibiza. It definitely had a party feel to it.

"Ishmael's really outdone himself this time" I hear Roman speak up in awe, looking at the magnitude of his friend's recent purchase.

He was a sucker for a good investment and had always admired real estate.

Roman used to be an agent back in Los Angeles after he got his undergraduate degree in business.

It was only when he visited his brother's firm in New York did he realize his passion for law. He came back to California and then went to law school at Stanford. The rest was well, history.

I look up at him through my lashes and smile. "yeah I wonder if he got the dancers again this time" I laugh sarcastically remembering last year's events.

he laughed at the thought "those dancers really got into it on his birthday, huh?" he remembered, wiggling his eyebrows at me suggestively.

We had both attended Ishmael's 30th birthday party in Oakland and were surprised to see they had taken the theme of the roaring 20's quite literally. There were gold and black decorations everywhere in the banquet, with not an inch left untouched.