Poor Miss Edwina Sharma (Charithra Chandran) believes she has hit the jackpot. Not only does she think her marriage to Lord Anthony Bridgerton (Jonathan Bailey) will be one out of true love, she’s also convinced that she’s won the Queen’s (Golda Rosheuvel) favor. After all, Her Majesty has taken it upon herself to organize her diamond’s wedding ceremony and reception. Little does Miss Edwina know that Queen Charlotte is simply using the event as a means to uncover the real identity of Lady Whistledown (voiced by Julie Andrews). And, by the end of Bridgerton's "The Choice," the young lady will discover an even harsher truth: that the man she thought was in love with her is actually harboring feelings for her sister, Kate (Simone Ashley).
Wedding preparations are in full force at the palace now that Lord Bridgerton has decided to hasten his marriage to Edwina. The ceremony will be performed by the archbishop himself, and the reception shall have peacocks, living statues, a footman watching every young lady suspected of being Lady Whistledown, and false rumors planted to finally catch the ton’s most well-informed member. While Queen Charlotte and her trusted footman Brimsley (Hugh Sachs) busy themselves with planning the perfect event, the bride and groom have their respective bachelorette and bachelor parties - all within the confines of Regency England good taste, of course. Anthony is out having a drink with his brothers and doing his best to keep his true feelings under wraps, and Edwina is participating in the traditional Indian Haldi ceremony. As Mary (Shelley Conn) and Kate spread turmeric over her body, she worries that the viscount isn’t as interested in her as she is in him, since he doesn’t even look at her very often. Kate, however, assures her that true love has less to do with eyes that meet than with souls that meet.
Meanwhile, at the Featheringtons’, Portia (Polly) and Jack (Rupert Young) are planning on using the wedding reception for their own advantage. Or, rather, Portia is making plans, and Jack is simply delighted by his soon-to-be mother-in-law’s keen eye for deceit. After hearing Lady Featherington’s idea of using Prudence (Bessie Carter) to showcase Jack’s fake ruby necklaces, the new lord of the household compliments her confidence and makes her blush by saying he enjoys a lady that seizes control.
Downstairs, Penelope (Nicola Coughlan) has her own secretive conversation with Madame Delacroix (Kathryn Drysdale), in which she tries to fish for information about Mr. Theo Sharpe (Calam Lynch). Unfortunately, the modiste doesn’t have any information to give her, and it is only at the wedding reception that she finds out from Eloise (Claudia Jessie) herself that there might be something more going on between her and the printer’s apprentice. At first, Eloise claims to be interested in nothing more but a good friendship, but she soon confesses to be plagued by doubts about Theo’s true feelings for her. Penelope is shocked and concerned about her friend. After all, if anyone were to find out that Eloise Bridgerton is romantically involved with a commoner, it would certainly be a scandal as big as the one that turned Lady Mary Sharma into a pariah.
But would it be scandalous enough to overshadow the great scandal of the day? After yet another difficult conversation with his sister Daphne (Phoebe Dynevor), Anthony walks down the aisle with his mind brimming with thoughts about duty and happiness. Could it be that Daphne is indeed right and that he has the choice to find love for himself? Is carrying the Bridgerton name really not as much of a burden as he has made it out to be? As the archbishop begins the ceremony, the viscount can hardly listen to his words, so enthralled that he is by the sight of Kate standing behind his bride.
Much like Anthony, Kate isn’t paying as much attention to the wedding as she should. Playing nervously with her bangles, she stares at the viscount’s eyes, oblivious to the fact that he’s daydreaming about marrying her instead of her sister. Just as Edwina catches sight of the exchange of looks between Kate and her groom, one of Miss Sharma’s bangles falls from her wrist, and Anthony rushes to pick it up. If, for a second, Edwina was suspicious that something was amiss in her wedding, she is now certain that she can’t go on with the ceremony. Dizzy and confused, she turns and leaves the church, making Queen Charlotte very mad.
Kate rushes off after her sister and is finally confronted about her feelings for the viscount, about which she has kept Edwina in the dark over the course of five whole episodes. Downright enraged with her sister, Edwina accuses her of lying repeatedly and asks her if she is in love with Anthony. When Kate fails to answer, Mary gets between her two daughters and tells Kate to leave the room. Outside, Kate sees Anthony running upstairs to his own quarters, followed by the whole Bridgerton family, and hides inside a closet.
Anthony doesn't get to spend much time with his family, either. However, instead of being kicked out of the room by his mother, he chooses to leave of his own accord. The viscount goes looking for his bride, who once more has to beg the people she loves to stop lying to her. Edwina asks him if the reason why he’s so intent on this wedding is his interest in her or simply his mere need for a wife. Anthony answers that it is both, that their roles as viscount and diamond complement each other, since neither of them were able to choose their own fate. Still not satisfied, Edwina demands to know if he loves her, but Anthony merely says that he understands and sympathizes with her. And as for Kate? She is nothing more than a thorn in the blossoming flower of their relationship, a problem that will be solved just as soon as she returns to India. After hearing everything the viscount has to say, Edwina asks for time to think. Though she is aware that there will be scandal if she decides to call it off, going on with the wedding isn’t a decision she can make lightly, and he can rest assured that she will come to a conclusion by the end of the day.
Upon leaving Edwina’s quarters, Anthony finds Kate hiding inside the closet and tries to have a conversation with her. But Miss Sharma isn’t interested. She tries to leave, but Anthony catches her hand. Sparks fly for a second, but nothing happens, as Kate goes looking for her sister once more. She tells Edwina that her feelings for the viscount don’t matter and that, ever since their father died, she has given up everything to ensure her sister’s and Mary’s happiness. Even angrier now that Kate has all but called her a burden, Edwina argues that she is an adult woman, capable of making her own decisions. Before kicking Kate out once again, she makes sure to remark that she is not her sister, but merely her half-sister.
Meanwhile, outside the quarters reserved for the bridal party, the guests wait to find out whether there will be a wedding. Lady Danbury (Adjoa Andoh) and Lady Bridgerton (Ruth Gemmell) make peace and bond over their shared burden of maybe having to tell the Queen that the wedding is off. Lady Danbury is particularly nervous, since Her Majesty blames her for putting in a good word for the Sharmas, guaranteeing Edwina the position of diamond of the season.
In the palace’s garden, Brimsley spreads rumors to draw Lady Whistledown out of her hiding spot, and Jack gathers the gentlemen around to talk business. They all seem very excited to invest in ruby mines in the Americas. The only person that seems to be catching up to the Featheringtons' ruse is Mondrich (Martins Imhangbe), whose opinion is quickly dismissed. Later, alone with Portia, Jack celebrates the success of their enterprise and renders the lady speechless with his flattery.
Back inside, Lady Danbury and Lady Bridgerton finally muster the courage to tell Queen Charlotte they cannot force Edwina and Anthony to get married. Soon after, Edwina comes in to speak for her own indecision in front of a very displeased Queen. Her Majesty’s anger dissipates when King George (James Fleet) burst into the room dressed in his nightshirt, believing the wedding to be his own. Edwina defuses the situation with kindness, convincing the king to go back to his bed and once again falling in the Queen’s good graces, this time on her own merit. Touched by Edwina’s actions, Her Majesty allows the young lady time to make up her mind.
Eloise, on the other hand, has already made a decision: she’s taking advantage of the commotion to escape the palace unnoticed and confess her feelings to Theo. She asks Penelope to keep her secret and runs off, not knowing that one of the Queen’s footmen is on her tail. Eloise is happy to know that Theo thinks about her just as much as she thinks of him, but the news that reaches Queen Charlotte at the end of the episode certainly has nothing to do with young lovebirds sharing their favorite books with one another. All Her Majesty needs to know is that one of Lady Bridgerton’s daughters has left the wedding straight to a printer’s shop.
But “The Choice” can’t come to a real end before a choice is made. And so Edwina summons both Anthony and Kate to the church to give them a piece of her mind. First of all, she can’t marry the viscount, for this would mean betraying her own feelings. Furthermore, she’s tired of having Kate make all her decisions for her. Before leaving the church, Edwina states that she has lost nothing after this day for she never had Anthony to begin with. It was Kate that lost something, her power, for now, Edwina has made up her own mind.
Free from the burden of marrying Edwina, Anthony shares a moment of silence alone with Kate in the church. And then, after a brief discussion about failing their duties to their families, the two finally kiss, putting an end to their suffering — at least for a little while, for as soon as they step outside those doors, all hell will break loose.