I would think that the ML could have cleared things up a lot earlier if he had a speck of empathy. If he did, it never showed. He looked down on her the entire time and never let her feel that he understood her position. It seemed that his entire way of making her want to be with him, was to imply or outright say that everything was her own fault because she was stupidly insecure. His "I never, ever made a mistake and it's all you" attitude is a classic manipulation and gaslighting technique. I have observed people using it for years.
The Millionaire's Christmas Wife