When you’re hosting a party in the desert you’re either the enfant terrible of an exiled oligarch or Colonel Gaddafi. Angela was a little from column A and a little too much from column B.

“Jared! The sand!” she shrieked at the waiting staff, who sweated under the millions of tiny bulbs replacing the heat of the setting sun, “It’s on the dance floor again.”

A waiter, presumably Jared, in a full black and white penguin suit, scurried off to retrieve the broom.

“Honestly I thought I asked for this area to be kept sand free at all times! How am I meant to show off my rumba?! I want to glide - GLIDE - not crunch.”

Angela’s eyes fell onto a tiny lizard. It sat on one of the huge palms which had been shipped in. Angela’s vision of a lush oasis had certainly been brought to life.

She started to open her mouth to instruct Jared to stop sweeping sand and deal with the intruder but instead, she bent down and examined the little creature. Her blue eyes were keen and judgemental.

“If you don’t fuck off I will collect you and all your family and make you into tiny lizard skin lipstick holders.”

She started to reach her hand out slowly. The lizard darted off scuttling into the now pitch-dark desert.

As Angela stood back up, satisfied that she’d won that particular battle, she noticed that Jared was no longer sweeping. She couldn’t see any of the caterers, waiters or even the sommelier who had only arrived that evening. (His card was well and truly marked).

Heels tick-tocking on the newly installed, yet temporary deck, she peered through the jungle leaves out into the black desert.

And saw nothing.

“Hello?” She heard her voice trail off into nothing. With no structures to bounce the sound meant no echo. It was just her. Alone.

A slight panic built up in her throat. She swallowed it, stubbed out her cigarette and grabbed the phone from her handbag. Scrolling for inspiration, and trying to navigate the multiple tables, she stumbled.

All the tables were tall, the type for sipping cocktails and sniffing coke. As she tripped she grabbed one of these pedestals, making a crystal champagne glass fall to the floor. It tinkle-shattered into a million pieces.

Her gasp held in the air, then dissipated up to the stars, shining like splinters of broken glass miles away in the sky.

Angela began to consider the foolishness of this location. Had the lizard been a sign? Why did she threaten it? Oh god, was he going to come back for her now? Why was she even doing this?

Then - bang.

The lights flashed on, the music began pumping and her friends leapt out from all around her, cheering, laughing, waving gift bags. Their diamond watches and earring give the starred Sky a run for its money.

Angela wiped a tiny tear which started to form from the corner of her ice-blue eye and started greeting her guests.

She snapped her fingers as she sailed past Jared and pointed at the sand on the dance floor.