I don't know if the following will answer your question, but it does hint at the direction in which he'll be taken and that his feelings for Eileen are genuine:
Coronation Street: Pat Phelan to get "a lot darker", reveals boss Kate Oates
The Corrie producer also hints at signs of vulnerability in the villain's personality
http://images.radiotimes.com/namedim...nal/119867.jpg
Coronation Street boss Kate Oates has revealed that villainous Pat Phelan will get even more evil over the coming months.
Viewers have already seen Phelan start to con the Corrie residents out of their cash for flats that he has no intention of building, but might the plotline take an even more sinister turn?
Asked about whether Pat's unscrupulous dealings mean that the character has a shelf life, Oates commented:
"There is often a shelf life with villainy but it depends on the journey we take him on. We may see moments of vulnerability, we may see him get quite a lot darker.
"I think you can be quite surprised when you look back at certain soap history and how long certain villains can live. It depends what you learn within the show, I think."
Quizzed as to when the current plotline will reach its conclusion, Oates replied: “I couldn't possibly tell you that without spoiling any stories. But you'll enjoy the journey, I'm sure.”
The producer's words come following actor Connor McIntyre's recent interview with RadioTimes.com in which he revealed that Phelan's feelings for Eileen could prove to be undoing. Said the Corrie star:
"In the strictest definition, Pat is a psychopath. He's myopic and, when it comes down to it, every situation is just about Pat. But it might soon turn into being about Pat and Eileen.
"She could start knocking his hard edges off. There's a warming and a softening towards her."
http://www.radiotimes.com/news/2016-...oss-kate-oates
Reading between the lines, it sounds to me like Phelan might turn on (and perhaps even kill?) Vinny to save Eileen. I'm sure he can figure out a way to come out of the con looking like an innocent party who was duped by Vinny.

