I'm not that certain that Kuroneko likes him in that way. I took that part as Kuroneko being envious of that Kirino has a brother like him. I think I remember some mention of Kuroneko having siblings (or not, I forget). Either way, she had to have been thinking how different her path would have been if she had a selflessly supportive brother the way Kirino does (especially since she doesn't deserve it). Maybe she would be the one negotiating about an anime version of her dark and brooding teen novel series.
I didn't take away anything romantic in that scene. Just admiration.
They did state that some other series got canned in pre-production, and they needed a replacement fast. What better choice than a quick and dirty loose adaptation of a bestselling light novel?
They had to fill it with something, and licensing the IP from an otaku author who is fresh on the market and likely inept at business isn't that dumb of a choice.
As much as I agree with how asinine Kirino getting her way is, Kyousuke and Kuroneko had a point. No work had been done on it so far, so there wasn't any legitimate reason to bastardize her work. Yuri series like Kirino's novel do get watched, even if their plots are completely nonsensical.