H'wood Party Girl

EFE/ZumaPress.com

RSVPs:  Ashlee Simpson, Jeremy Piven, Paris Hilton, Nick Cannon
When:  Sept. 20
Where:  Opera

I just received a severe weather alert: A very rare and cold September storm is whisking through Los Angeles. It's already 60 degrees and dropping, so I pull on black tights and a leather jacket to prepare for a night at Opera. Looks like Ashlee Simpson had the same idea. The host of tonight's Launch of Hornitos Tequila walks into the club with an almost identical outfit! Luckily, she doesn't seem to notice the fashion similarity amid the hungry flashes of photographers lining the entrance. 

"The most important thing is my family and friends," Ash coos after promoting her upcoming album. "I just make time for them. And I don't sleep much!" Clearly. I don't know how the petite blonde finds time to make music between attending fashion shows in New York and clubbing with Pete Wentz in Las Vegas. Speaking of which, where is Petey boy? 

According to Ashlee's publicist, I'm not allowed to ask. Which makes me wonder, Has there been some fall out? An argument over guyliner, perhaps?

Biting the Worm
Shivering waitresses—some wearing black wings and white halos, others adorned with white wings and red devil horns—pass out Hornitos tequila shots to heat up the clubbers. I'm not a fan of the worm, but I cave considering the harsh temperatures. Nick Cannon, on the other hand, uses his black beanie to stay warm. "I don't drink," the rapper tells me. "But I've seen some naughty stuff after a few shots." I think that's a hint to stop boozing.

Table Dancing and Modeling
Jeremy Piven bypasses the carpet, sneaking through the back with a modelesque brunette. Surprisingly, the two are left alone with a bottle on a red velvet bench—that is, until Ashlee parks it next to them. The cameras are too much for the Emmy winner, so he heads inside to the privacy of a dark corner table.

Chris Weeks/WireImage.com

Nicky Hilton has the same idea, sitting two tables down with boyfriend David Katzenberg. The younger Hilton is all smiles for once. "New York took a lot out of me," she says of her experience debuting her new Nicholai line at Fashion Week. "Now, I'm back here working on next season and relaxing," she adds. In the party world, relaxing means dancing on booths in studded Christian Louboutins to Justin Timberlake's sexy lyrics—which is exactly what Nicky does when her big sis arrives.

Personality Switcheroos
Maybe it's some trick of the cold, but Nicky and Paris seemed to have switched demeanors. Paris is usually the one feeding the press, but tonight she doesn't talk to a single reporter. Meanwhile, the typically one-word-answer Nicky even comments on O.J. Simpson: "I don't even know. I don't even care," she says of the ongoing investigation. Eight words, amazing!

While the Lakers' Lamar Odom finds his groove on the dance floor, Eve cozies up on the lap of a very attractive man. I try to maneuver past Black Donnellys beauty Olivia Wilde to get a better look and discover the rapper is hugging Survivor-turned-actor Shane Powers. I usually see Eve with a more A-list crowd (she partied with Gwen Stefani and Sean "Diddy" Combs during Fashion Week)—the tequila or the chilly weather must be going to her head, too! Scared of any behavior reversals of my own, I decide to call it a night and let Ashlee Simpson exhaust herself further by dancing away the frosty breeze.

Chris Weeks/WireImage.com

—Additional soiree scoping by Marisa Roffman