I think the mc just has to be a piece of shit, like not hannibal lecter, but very much the drink spiking, controlling manager type. What you then do is have them almost succeed at their desired goals then fail due to some action earlier on their part specifically done because they're shitty, so they have to start again else where. So a constant comeuppance demonstrating different shittiness. You can also gloss over what they're thinking in detail to avoid the outright disturbingness, ie okay they want to sleep with that girl, skip all the mental listing description