I can't say for sure whether those lines unintentionally hinted at it or not. It's entirely possible the developer planned to introduce some minor drama in Chapter 7, or something along those lines.Those lines were removed because they unintentionally hinted as Eric being reluctant to share Vi, which he is not.
Therefore, they have been replaced, like many others between the two versions.
He is still not fully onboard with the whole idea, and neither is Vi, mind you. But they are getting more and more comfortable with it.
Unfortunately, I can't see the whole picture since I'm not the developer, but in my opinion, all the changes in the Silver version have ultimately benefited the game.
Sometimes the path needs adjustment to reach the best destination, and I'm optimistic about where these changes are leading us.